By Melissa S. Lee
If 2020 has proven anything to us, it is that change is the only constant in life.
With the introduction of the COVID-19 virus, aka “Rona,” to the masses in early 2020, so began the shutdown of the entire country on Friday the 13th (no coincidence, I’m sure) of March; the long quarantine implemented; the homeschooling of our Coronatweens and -teens by us WFH parents causing our Monday through Friday to morph into one big Blursday and, perhaps, the need for a quarantini (no judging) with the trusted quarantine pod; the mask mandate, mask-shaming, and the embarrassing adult-onset maskne that followed; the mad-dashers, later termed “covidiots” on the hunt for – or hoarding – toilet paper, alcohol gel, and Lysol; the rise in Coronaphobia and the tightening of our COVID bubble; the beginning of Zooming, connections made, and later Zumping; the push for a country-wide covexit plan; the recent Pfizer and Moderna vaccine; and our upcoming, long-awaited vaxications on the horizon. Needless to say, our everyday vernacular has changed quite a bit as well over the past 18 months.
Knowing that your theory provides you with the foundation you need to write anything you might hear, I challenge you to expand your writing, your dictionary, and your confidence with the pandemic-specific terminology you may soon hear in your professional career. You can do it!
| 2019-nCov | aka COVID-19 or Coronavirus* |
| anti-buddies | two friends who have the COVID antibodies and are hanging out together |
| Blursday | the merging of weekdays during the pandemic |
| Corona | aka Coronavirus or COVID-19 virus* |
| Coronababies | babies raised during the COVID pandemic |
| Coronacation | taking vacation time during the COVID-19 pandemic with no place to go due to lockdowns |
| Coronaphobe | used to describe individuals with a clinical level of fear with respect to contracting the COVID-19 virus |
| Coronaphobia | the fear of touching things or coming into contact with people during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| Coronaphobic | having a fear of contracting Coronavirus |
| Coronapocalypse | refers to the end of the world by the Coronavirus |
| Coronateens | teenagers raised during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| Coronatweens | preteens raised during the COVID-19 pandemic |
| Coronavirus | aka the COVID-19 virus* |
| covexit | refers to easing restrictions previously enforced during the COVID pandemic |
| COVID bubble | a group of people outside your home that one feels comfortable spending time with during the COVID pandemic |
| COVID-19 | aka Coronavirus* |
| covideo party | a virtual party conducted online via a platform like Zoom or Skype |
| covidiot | derogatory term used to describe someone not wearing their mask, adhering to the public health policies, and/or hoarding goods |
| covidivorce | a divorce resulting from differences during the COVID-19 lockdown |
| COVID-phobe | used to describe individuals with a clinical level of fear with respect to contracting the COVID-19 |
| doomscrolling | the act of scrolling through social media in search of the latest catastrophe or bad news |
| long-hauler | refers to individuals who contracted COVID-19 and then suffer from long-lasting effects for months or years |
| maskhole | derogatory term used to describe an individual who refuses to wear a face mask |
| mask-shaming | the act of shaming someone else for not wearing a face mask |
| maskne | acne that appears as a result of chronic mask usage |
| maskophobia | fear of what your blind date will look like without a mask |
| quaranteam | the people one chooses to live with during the quarantine lockdown |
| quarantime | the time during which one was or is expected to quarantine |
| quarantine pod | a small group of people who quarantine together and limit their exposure to others |
| quarantini | a cocktail one consumes while social distancing, oftentimes done during a Zoom or Skype meeting with friends |
| quarantinitis | an inflammatory response that develops from being quarantined too long |
| Rona | slang for Coronavirus |
| super spreader | a large event where the COVID-19 virus is likely to spread from asymptomatic COVID-19 people present at the event |
| vaxication | refers to a vacation one takes after being vaccinated from COVID-19 |
| walktail | a cocktail made in a to-go cup and designed to be consumed while walking the streets |
| WFH | an abbreviation for “work from home” |
| Zepo | a depo conducted via Zoom |
| Zoombombing/Zoom raiding | refers to the unwanted and disruptive intrusion into a video conference from internet trolls |
| Zooming | the act of socializing via Zoom |
| Zumping | the act of dumping a partner via Zoom |
Melissa S. Lee, CRI, is an adjunct instructor at the College of Court Reporting in Valparaiso, Ind.
*Coronavirus and COVID-19 are used interchangeably in this article. While in some cases that is acceptable – for instance, the COVID-19 virus and the virus that causes COVID-19 are acceptable, as is simply the coronavirus – some medical professionals, government officials, and journalists note that there is a distinction: Coronavirus is a kind of common virus, and COVID-19 is a specific type of coronavirus.
