{"id":8540,"date":"2021-03-23T16:09:25","date_gmt":"2021-03-23T20:09:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/language-news\/?p=8540"},"modified":"2021-04-11T15:48:25","modified_gmt":"2021-04-11T19:48:25","slug":"pandemic-inspired-vocabulary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/language-news\/2021\/03\/23\/pandemic-inspired-vocabulary\/","title":{"rendered":"Pandemic Inspired Vocabulary"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pandemic Inspired Vocabulary <\/strong><\/p>\n

I always tell people that language is \u201cliving\u201d since it is constantly adapting and growing, and this year was a perfect example.<\/p>\n

We have seen our personal vocabulary grow to include words that were no doubt uncommon in our language arsenal before this: social distancing, personal protection equipment (PPE), quarantine, community spread, contact tracing, etc.<\/p>\n

There is also a whole spectrum of newly coined words inspired by the pandemic. The dreaded \u2018mascne\u2019 for example, or your much needed \u2018quarantini\u2019 to get through another \u2018blursday.\u2019 The idea of \u2018doom-scrolling\u2019 and the \u2018new normal\u2019 are nothing out of the ordinary for us. If your 2019-self heard you using any of these terms now, they might look at you cockeyed and confused.<\/p>\n

This is certainly not a phenomenon unique to the English language. As widespread as this pandemic has been, it also has had world-wide implications on language. This makes it especially important to be keeping up on your language studies so that you can learn the newest \u2018lingo\u2019 and enter the times hence known as A.C. (After Coronavirus).<\/strong><\/p>\n

Out of curiosity, members of our team took to the newest social media-app Clubhouse to explore this topic further and solicit some worldwide examples.<\/p>\n

Here are some words shared with us from language learners around the world:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Coronaangst \u2013 German, fear of the coronavirus<\/p>\n

Maskentrottel \u00a0– German, \u2018mask idiot\u2019, someone who does not wear their mask properly<\/p>\n

Balconsanger \u2013 German, \u2018balcony singer\u2019, someone who entertains neighbors from their balcony<\/p>\n

Covidiota \u2013 Spanish, \u2018covididiot\u2019, someone who does not take restrictions seriously<\/p>\n

Aplanar la curva \u2013 Spanish, to flatten the curve<\/p>\n

D.A.D. \u2013 Italian, pronounced \u2018dad\u2019, acronym for at home studies<\/p>\n

Leenhonden\u00a0\u2013\u00a0<\/span>Dutch,\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/span>to loan\u00a0a dog to someone so that they can go outside for a walk<\/span><\/p>\n

Coronafu\u00dfgru\u00df \u2013 German, Corona foot greeting<\/p>\n

Interestingly enough, there were also a few examples of anglicisms: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Home-office \u2013 Czech<\/p>\n

Smart-working \u2013 Italian<\/p>\n

Der lockdown, Il lockdown \u2013 German, Italian<\/p>\n

Once you start to gather a list of these new words in your own target language, what is the best place to study them? By adding them into your \u2018Learned Vocab\u2019 in Transparent Language Online, of course! That way, you will be able to constantly review them until they are solidified in your memory.<\/p>\n