Unsurprisingly, Covid-19 related terms dominate the list.
Collins English Dictionary has released its top 10 words of 2020, with Covid-19-related phrases featuring prominently.
Coronavirus, self-isolate and social distancing all made the cut, with 'lockdown' listed as the dictionary's word of the year.
Other words in the top 10 include TikToker and BLM - which recognises the Black Lives Matter movement.
Here's the top 10:
BLM: abbreviation, for Black Lives Matter – a movement that campaigns against racially motivated violence and oppression.
coronavirus: noun, any one of a group of RNA-containing viruses that can cause infectious illnesses of the respiratory tract, including COVID-19; so called because of their crown-like appearance in electron micrographs
furlough: noun, a temporary laying-off of employees, usually because there is insufficient work to occupy them; verb (tr) to lay off (staff) temporarily. from Dutch verlof, from ver- for- + lof leave, permission; related to Swedish förlof
key worker: or keyworker, noun, an employee in any of a number of professions considered to be essential to the functioning of society, for example teachers, police officers, health workers, shop workers, etc
lockdown: noun the imposition of stringent restrictions on travel, social interaction, and access to public spaces.
Megxit: noun, informal the withdrawal of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex from royal duties, announced in January 2020; from Meg(han), Duchess of Sussex + (e)xit; influenced by Brexit
mukbang: noun, a video or webcast in which the host eats a large quantity of food for the entertainment of viewers; Korean, from meogneun eating + bangsong broadcast.
self-isolate: vb (intr), to quarantine oneself if one has or suspects one has a contagious disease; self-isolation, noun.
social distancing: noun, the practice of maintaining a certain distance between oneself and other people in order to prevent infection with a disease. Also called: physical distancing; social distance or socially distance, verb
TikToker: noun, a person who regularly shares or appears in videos on TikTok.
