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'Lockdown' is the Collins Dictionary 2020 Word of the Year

Posted at 6:31 AM, Nov 11, 2020
and last updated 2020-11-11 06:31:45-05

(WXYZ) — Collins Dictionary announced Monday its word of the year for 2020 – Lockdown.

It comes with the COVID-19 pandemic, and is one of several words related to the pandemic that is included in the ten words of the year.

Collins said lexicographers chose Lockdown as the word of the year because it was a unifying experience for billions around the world who helped play their part in combating the spread of COVID-19.

According to Collins, there were over 250,000 usages of lockdown during 2020, compared to only 4,000 the year before.

The other words that are in the shortlist include:

  • Pandemic
  • Coronavirus
  • Social Distancing
  • Self-isolation
  • Furlough
  • Key Workers
  • Megxit
  • BLM
  • TikToker
  • Mukbang