Coronavirus and COVID–19 clear language list

Disclaimer: these are only my interpretations. Check meanings if you're creating content. Exact meaning of terms like “lockdown” may depend on where you are.

Note: Corona is the name of the virus. COVID–19 is the name of the disease.

“self-isolate” = “stay at home and away from others”

“social distancing” = “keep 2 metres (6 feet) away from other people and avoid being in public unless necessary”

"lockdown" = "public ordered to stay at home and most businesses closed"

"official cases" = "people the government know have tested positive"

"WHO classifies COVID-19 as a pandemic" = "World Health Organisation describes the COVID-19 disease as a ‘pandemic’, saying it is spreading alarmingly fast across and within many different countries, causing deaths and seriously affecting many people"

"outbreak" = "arrival of the virus in [area]"

“comorbidities, comorbid conditions” = “underlying or additional health conditions, like cancer or heart disease”, “existing health conditions, like cancer or heart disease”

"postponed" "suspended" = "not going to take place on [date] but being reorganised for another date"

"school closures” = "schools are closed"

“rolled out” = “introduced”

“precautionary measures” = “actions to reduce risk”

"has peaked" = "frequency of people being infected is slowing"

“delay phase” = “increased restrictions”

“military being used to impose X” = “soldiers helping make sure people do X”

“zero prospect” = “no chance”, “no possibility”

“powers to detain potentially infected people” = “allowed by government to stop people who may be infected from going anywhere”

“movement limit” = “travel ban”, “not being allowed to leave an area”

“presumptive positive” = “tested positive regionally, waiting for central lab confirmation of result”

“furlough” = “paid or unpaid time off from work because of the economy or employer’s financial situation, usually temporary”. This has different meanings and specifics in different places. Could be clearer to explain the meaning in words and avoid using the term.

“layoff” = “unpaid time off from work because of the economy or employer’s financial situation” or “permanent loss of job because of the economy or employer’s financial situation”. This has different meanings in different places.

“PPE for non-medical, personal use” = “face masks and gloves”

Please put dates on your content, and times if possible. Things are changing fast and we all need to know when something was published.

For information on coronavirus and COVID-19 please see World Health Organisation website: https://www.who.int/.

________________

Editor’s note:

Any edit or addition suggestions, please comment on the tweet where I originally shared my doc, thank you!

https://twitter.com/CakeContent/status/1240425887037784067