'Vax' has been announced as the word of the year by Oxford Languages 2021 edition. It is a shot in the arm for COVID-19 vaccines.
While rarely used in the beginning of the year, by September its use was over 72 times more frequent than at the same time last year, according to Oxford.
"Vax is our 2021 Word of the Year. When our lexicographers began digging into our English language corpus data it quickly became apparent that vax was a particularly striking term. A relatively rare word in our corpus until this year, by September it was over 72 times more frequent than at the same time last year. It has generated numerous derivatives that we are now seeing in a wide range of informal contexts, from vax sites and vax cards to getting vaxxed and being fully vaxxed, no word better captures the atmosphere of the past year than vax," reads a statement on Oxford's official website.
Another synonym for vax is jab, which was frequently used last year.
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