The experience of the coronavirus pandemic in words and images

Abstract

The authors analyze the New official and colloquial vocabulary related to the pandemic, which has enriched the contemporary Polish language after 2020. They present a typology of semantic groups, emphasize the word formation creativity of language users, describe the types of motivation behind the linguistic activity of broadcasters. They show how broadcasters use linguistic and visual mechanisms (on the example of memes) that allow them to name new situations, express emotions and feelings, and evaluate real events. The material presented in the article, which is a diverse and representative source of information about the studied phenomenon, has been excerpted from media texts: press, TV and Internet (e.g. e-press, forums, blogs, social networking sites).