These words were the runners up for Merriam-Webster's 2020 "word of the year" based on lookup spikes around specific events. "Pandemic" won the top prize.
coronavirus
Coronavirus was among runners up for word of the year as it jumped into the mainstream.
defund
"Defund" was looked up 6,059% more in 2020 than in 2019 after some Americans protesting police violence against Black citizens called for the defunding of police.
mamba
Spikes for mamba occurred after the January death of Kobe Bryant, whose nickname was the Black Mamba.
kraken
A mass of lookups occurred for kraken in July after Seattle's new National Hockey League franchise chose the mythical sea monster as its name, urged along by fans. The hockey expansion franchise unveiled its nickname in July, ending 19 months of speculation about whether the team might lean traditional or go eccentric with the name for the league's 32nd team. Seattle's colors are a deep dark blue with a lighter shade of blue as a complement.
quarantine
With Italian roots, "quarantine" was used during the Black Death of the 1300s for the period of time a new ship coming into port would have to wait outside a city to prevent disease. The “quar” in quarantine derives from 40, for the 40 days required.
antebellum
Country group Lady Antebellum's name change to Lady A drove dictionary interest in June.
schadenfreude
"Schadenfreude" lookups spiked upon news of the college admissions scandal broke in March, but also when President Trump contracted the coronavirus in October and lost reelection in November. It means "enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others."
asymptomatic
"Asymptomatic" was popular in 2020 due to its relation to the COVID-19 pandemic.
irregardless
In case you thought 2020 couldn’t get any worse, Merriam-Webster just officially recognized “irregardless” as a word.😱
— Jamie Lee Curtis (@jamieleecurtis) July 6, 2020
icon
Icon was front and center in headlines after the deaths of U.S. Rep. John Lewis and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg.
malarkey
Malarkey got a boost from President-elect Joe Biden, who's fond of using the word.
