How 100 days of coronavirus lockdown have changed Britain - maybe forever

Mirror

We have lived in lockdown for 100 days, life before March 24 a distant memory.

“Normal” life now means accepting that a trip to the shops means standing, face hidden under a mask, in a socially-distanced queue, or working from home, while home-schooling the kids, or keeping in touch with colleagues and loved-ones on Zoom calls.

Things we took for granted – the night out at the pub, trip to the cinema, mini-break in a European capital – belong in the past.

Even our vocabulary has changed, words like shielding, self-isolation, the R number and lockdown itself now common.

Shielding：shield有盾牌的意思，coldplay《viva la vida》里面有‘Be my mirror my sword and shield’。Shielding在这里面指有隔离防护作用的防护罩

self-isolation：自我隔离

The Oxford English Dictionary added 20 coronavirus words, including “elbow bump”, in April.

elbow bump：撞肘问候    

 bump /bʌmp/  n肿块，隆起物；撞击；撞击声

动词：

1.[ V ] ~ against/into sb/sth to hit sb/sth by accident （无意地）碰，撞 •In the dark I bumped into a chair. 我在黑暗中撞上了一把椅子。 •The car bumped against the kerb. 汽车撞上了路缘。

2.[ VN ] ~ sth (against/on sth) to hit sth, especially a part of your body, against or on sth （尤指身体部位）碰上，撞上 •Be careful not to bump your head on the beam when you stand up. 当心站起来时头别撞了横梁。

3.[ + adv./prep. ] to move across a rough surface 颠簸行进 •The car bumped its way slowly down the drive. 汽车沿车道缓慢地颠簸行进。

4.[ VN + adv./prep. ] to move sb from one group or position to another; to remove sb from a group 把（某人）掉换到（另一群体或位置）；（从某群体）调出，开除（某人）

Here are some other ways the lockdown has changed Britain in the past 100 days.

Finance

With shops closed and long queues at supermarkets, more Brits than ever started doing their shopping online, or buying their groceries local.

One in five British households bought groceries online in the past month, pumping up sales for home delivery by 91%, while small independent stores rang up 69% more sales in the three months to 20 June, according to analysts Kantar.

Kantar凯度是全球领先的数据、洞察和咨询公司之一。 总部位于英国伦敦的凯度是在全球范围内提供数据、洞察和咨询的公司。

Nearly half of debit card transactions are now made online, while older generations in particular have seen their internet spending rise, to 40% of transactions from just 20% a year ago.

And with cash seen as a potential vector for spreading the virus, and the contactless limit raised to £45, the decline of cash has accelerated too.

vector n.   /ˈvektə(r)/  ( biology 生 ) an insect, etc. that carries a particular disease from one living thing to another （传染疾病的）介体，载体

Withdrawals from ATM fell as much as 62% year on year during the lockdown, according to data from cash machine network, Link.

But while nearly two million UK households are set to emerge from restrictions better off after saving money, those with incomes less than £30,000 are more likely to have borrowed money and face a difficult future.

Economy

And figures have now shown the UK economy shrank 2.2% between January and March, the joint largest fall since 1979.

economy shrank：经济萎缩   The International Monetary Fund (IMF) ：国际货币基金组织

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warns the world is set to take a £9.6 trillion Covid-19 hit, and Britain’s economy will plunge by 10.2% in 2020.

plunge /plʌndʒ/  

1. [ + adv./prep. ] to move or make sb/sth move suddenly forwards and/or downwards 使突然前冲（或下落）

She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

2.[ V ] ( of prices, temperatures, etc. 价格、温度等 ) to decrease suddenly and quickly 暴跌；骤降；突降

•Stock markets plunged at the news of the coup. 政变的消息一传来，股票市场便暴跌。

3.[ V + adv./prep. ] ( of a road, surface, etc. 道路、表面等 ) to slope down steeply 陡峭地向下倾斜

•The track plunged down into the valley. 小路陡然而下，直插山谷。

4.[ V ] to move up and down suddenly and violently （剧烈）颠簸，震荡

•His heart plunged (= because of a strong emotion) . 他的心怦怦乱跳。

短语：

1.ˌplunge ˈinˌplunge ˈinto sth

(1) to jump into sth, especially with force （尤指用力地）投入，跳进

(2) to start doing sth in an enthusiastic way, especially without thinking carefully about what you are doing 热情投入；贸然行动

•She was about to plunge into her story when the phone rang. 她刚要开始大谈她的经历，电话响了。

2.ˌplunge sth ˈinˌplunge sth ˈinto sth：to push sth quickly and with force into sth else 猛力插入；扎进

•She plunged the knife deep into his chest. 她把刀子深深地刺进他的胸膛。

3.ˌplunge ˈinto sth

(1)= plunge in

(2) to experience sth unpleasant 经历，陷入（不快的事）

•The country plunged deeper into recession. 那个国家进一步陷入经济萧条之中。

4.ˌplunge sb/sth ˈinto sth：to make sb/sth experience sth unpleasant 使经历，使陷入（不快的事情）

•The news plunged them into deep depression. 这条消息立即使他们深感沮丧。

名词

 1.a sudden movement downwards or away from sth 突然跌落；突然分离

•The calm water ends there and the river begins a headlong plunge. 平静的河水突然中断，开始奔腾直泻而下。

2.~ (in sth) a sudden decrease in an amount or the value of sth （价格、数量的）暴跌，猛降，骤减  •a dramatic plunge in profits 利润锐减

3.~ into sth the act of becoming involved in a situation or activity 卷入；参与

•The company is planning a deeper plunge into the commercial market. 这家公司正计划进一步投入商业市场。

4.an act of jumping or diving into water; a quick swim 跳水；快速游泳

•She went for a plunge. 她去游泳了。

IDIOMS 习语

1. take the ˈplunge

( informal ) to decide to do sth important or difficult, especially after thinking about it for a long time （尤指深思熟虑后）果断行事，作出决定

Some experts say we should expect levels of unemployment of three million or more, while the Centre for Retail Research predicts as many as 20,000 shops could close this year. Debenhams, Laura Ashley and Cath Kidston are just some of those hit hard already.

Debenhams, Laura Ashley and Cath Kidston：公司名

Workers furloughed fear redundancy once employers need to start paying some of their wages in August.

furlough n. /ˈfɜːləʊ/  

1.permission to leave your duties for a period of time, especially for soldiers working in a foreign country （尤指在国外服役士兵的）休假（许可）

2.( NAmE ) permission for a prisoner to leave prison for a period of time （犯人的）准假

3.( NAmE ) a period of time during which workers are told not to come to work, usually because there is not enough money to pay them （通常因发不出工资而给的）准假

redundancy n.   /rɪˈdʌndənsi/

 1.[ U ] [ Cusually pl. ] ( BrE ) the situation when sb has to leave their job because there is no more work available for them （因劳动力过剩而造成的）裁员，解雇

•to accept/take voluntary redundancy (= to offer to leave your job) 接受自愿裁汰

•redundancy payments 裁员补偿

2.[ U ] ( technical 术语 ) ( formal ) the state of not being necessary or useful 多余；累赘

Meanwhile, the way we work may have changed forever. Many have seen the benefits to work-life balance of working from home and video calls, with 1,500 working parents surveyed by Bright Horizons showing only around one in eight want to return to pre-pandemic ‘normal’. One in 10 business premises in London have already permanently closed.

Communication

We’ve all had to find new ways to communicate. Unknown to most before lockdown, millions are now familiar with video conferencing app Zoom, which by the end of April had over 300million daily meeting participants.

And older people have also become tech-savvy, with 75% of elderly residents in of parts of the UK regularly using Zoom, WhatsApp and FaceTime to connect with loved ones.

savvy   /ˈsævi/  ( informal ) practical knowledge or understanding of sth 实际知识；见识；了解 •political savvy 政治见识

Lockdown has also given us the chance to meet our neighbours – whether it’s saying “hello” over the garden fence, going into the street to clap for carers, or getting together in community Whatsapp groups and Facebook pages.

However, social media has had its downsides, with a study finding that those who believed in conspiracy theories were more likely to get Covid-19 information from Facebook or YouTube.

conspiracy theories阴谋论

原文链接：https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/