Covidictionary: New Words and Their Definitions to Describe COVID-19 Existence

by Elizabeth Gibbs


Enlighten Up! A Blog offered by Beth Gibbs recently ran a hilarious post –– here is a selection from the Covidictionary.

Laughter promotes overall health and wellness, relieves physical and emotional stress; boosts the immune system, and releases dopamine and serotonin – the feel-good chemicals. Having a sense of humor enables us to laugh at, or at least see the humor in, life's absurdities. With pandemic swarming, global warming, and political storming, we have all the absurdities we can handle at the moment. So I decided to clap back at corona with some word plays. With contributions from family, friends, my writing colleagues, and a few online sources, those word plays became a Covi-dictionary organized by theme. Hope some of them tickle your funny bone.

Words to describe our current global situation

Cover-whelmed – A feeling of utter exhaustion with the intensity of the covid crisis, and the overwhelming amount of information we get every day. Can you say TMI? #2020!

 

Corona-phobia – the fear of catching Covid-19.

 

Pan-damn-ic – A curse; a feeling of anger and disgust at the corona virus and the way it has disrupted any semblance of normal life.

 

Corona-coaster – The crazy topsy-turvy ride we rode in 2020 and are still riding in 2021.

 

Quaran-teens - Sometimes called coronials; a term used to describe those who are in their teens during corona-times and its aftermath.

Words to describe appropriate behavior and responses to Covid-19

Covid-coping – The ways we practice prevention until we can get the vaccine. This includes the 3-W’s: Wear a mask, Wash your hands and Watch your distance.

 

Covid-copia – The vitamins, supplements, masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, PPE, toilet paper, sourdough starter, and other stuff we keep in stock during corona-times.

 

Quarantini - A mash up of quarantine and martini. This is any cocktail you mix at home while in lockdown or self-isolating.

Words to describe existential ignorance about Covid-19

Covidiot – describes science-deniers and those who refuse to ‘follow the Fauci.’ A lot like maskhole (see maskhole). A maskhole can be a covidiot.

 

Covid Crazies – Extremely stupid behavior; those who move beyond being covidiots or maskholes and take their delusional mindset to the level of covidiocy.

 

Covillusion – A baseless conspiracy theory that the virus will magically disappear.

 

Maskhole - Rhymes (sort of) with a commonly used profanity beginning with the letter ‘A.’ It applies to those folks who, for any number of unenlightened reasons, refuse to ‘follow the Fauci’ or practice the 3-W’s.

 

Moronavirus - This is what Covid-19 is called when covidiots and maskholes test positive; a word sometimes used by foreign media to describe what's happening with the pandemic in the United States.

Words to describe treatments for existential ignorance about Covid-19

Pandem-otomy - Surgery in which a damaged portion of the prefrontal cortex is separated and then permanently partitioned off from the healthy part by a big, beautiful wall. The bad news? It’s an expensive operation. The good news? Mexico will pay for it.

 

Pandem-ectomy – Surgery designed to completely remove the damaged section of the prefrontal cortex freeing the individual to ‘follow the Fauci,’ believe in Science and practice the 3-W’s.

 

Prefrontal Covid-ostomy – Last resort surgery to cut a hole in the prefrontal cortex and insert a tube, which is then connected to Tyler Perry’s Madea character who takes off her earrings, puts her hands on her hips, rolls her neck, and yells into the tube telling the patient exactly what she’ll do to them if they don’t ‘follow the Fauci’ and practice the 3-W’s.

Words to describe work/life activities and outcomes related to the pandemic

Blursday – Refers to the difficulty in determining what day of the week it is. Actually, it’s every day on the Covid-calendar that runs our lives during this difficult time.

 

Covidivorce - Exactly what it sounds like: when forced togetherness as a result of quarantine hastens a couple's realization that they probably don't belong together.

 

Coronababies – The term used for the number of babies conceived during the pandemic who will be born in 2021. This is a result of sexy-time replacing baking, gardening, knitting, reading, playing a musical instrument, binge-watching TV, learning a new language and screaming into the wind.

 

Corona-cation - A stay-cation forced by the pandemic. It’s also what some are calling WFH (working from home).

 

Spendemic - This word refers to the increase in online shopping during the pandemic.

Note: All yoga instructors are now under Nama-stay-at-home orders.

Beth Gibbs started her yoga practice in 1968, four months after her son was born and she’s been practicing ever since. She currently teaches all levels therapeutic yoga classes for adults, and specialty classes for seniors in the Hartford, Connecticut area. Beth is a certified yoga therapist through the International Association of Yoga Therapists and is guest faculty at the Kripalu School of Integrative Yoga Therapy. She writes for the blogs, Yoga for Healthy Aging, and Accessible Yoga. Her Master’s Degree from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts is in Yoga Therapy and Mind/Body Health.

This post was edited by Patrice Priya Wagner, Managing Editor of Accessible Yoga blog and member of the Board of Directors.

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