2020 may have been the worst for almost everything, but it was a great time for new words. Trapped at home, our brains buzzing, turns out to be a great crucible for word creation, explains Ben Zimmer. 2020 took away a lot, but it gave us doomscrolling, covidiots, quarantinis and much, much more.

From “Covidiot” to “Gleefreshing,” It Was a Lively Year for Word Creation