Here are the lockdown dating terms you need to know in 2020

The pandemic has changed many aspects of our lives, including how we date.

In lockdown, we’ve said goodbye to one-night-stands, late night drinks or any form of real life interaction (though there are reports of some people sneaking out for a shag or not-so-socially-distanced date).

For the better part of 2020 so far, dating has been virtual – with phone and video calls galore.

Naturally, with a new dating culture comes new dating terms, and yes, the trends that they represent are just as awful as the ones we already know.

Through a recent survey, the dating website Match.com, has revealed some interesting findings, including that nearly half of all participants (45%) are ‘date-piling’ (stockpiling dates) for when lockdown, so they can meet people instantly after.

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Others (31%) are already in an ‘isolationship’ – they are exclusive with someone they are dating virtually but haven’t met yet.

Meanwhile, boredom in lockdown is also causing us to behave differently as 27% of participants report a so-called ‘flu-merang’ – being contacted by exes during the pandemic.

Others are experiencing ‘left on read rage’, as matches and dates are taking forever to reply to them, even though none of us have anything to do right now.

Ouch, that’s harsh.

• Date-piling: Lining up real-life dates so you’re ready for when restrictions lift and can go on dates straight away.
• Iso-boasting: Showing off your partner’s mad domestic skills during lockdown on social media.
• Isolationship: A relationship that you’ve started with someone you virtually met during lockdown (you haven’t met IRL yet).
• Locktail-hour: Having drinks video with a date you met online.
• Quaran-teasing: Basically being a big tease and flirting with someone you don’t like just because you’re bored in lockdown.
• Flu-merangs: An ex that comes out of the woodworks during the pandemic.
• Pen-demic pal: An online match that you’re continously messaging with but haven’t had a phone or video date with yet.
• Left on ‘read’ rage: the anger at a message being left on ‘read’ for an unacceptable amount of time, even though everyone is in lockdown and there’s nothing else to do.
• Social-kisstancing: trying to flirt after lockdown when you have forgotten how to do it.
• Ditching-hour: A clean-up of all your online dating matches because the conversation has dried up or they weren’t what you expected on the first video date.
• Quarrel-tines: Arguments caused by miscommunication when dating apart, with messages ‘lost in isolation’ (being interpreted in the wrong way) .

OK, dating is hard – but it’s not as doom and gloom as it might seem.

The survey also showed that 12% of singles are now more determined to find a long-lasting relationship, and 40% have a stronger desire for love and affection.

‘Every aspect of our lives has been affected by the pandemic and our dating habits are no exception,’ said Hayley Quinn, Match’s dating expert.

‘We’re seeing singles use this time to approach online dating with a renewed vigour and putting in to practice new habits that they intend to take forward as social distancing measures ease and real-world dates resume.

‘With virtual dates becoming more common, singles have even more opportunities to meet their potential match and embark on the committed relationship they’ve been looking for.’

These aren’t the only new dating terms to come out of lockdown.

The language learning app Babbel has also released some lingual gems like Zumped (being dumped via Zoom) and Coronalingus (dirty talk, lockdown-style) and more.

Want to know more about how coronavirus is changing the dating game?

You’re in luck, we’ve created an entire guide on it.

Dating terms and trends, defined

Blue-stalling: When two people are dating and acting like a couple, but one person in the partnership states they're unready for any sort of label or commitment (despite acting in a different manner).

Breadcrumbing: Leaving ‘breadcrumbs’ of interest – random noncommittal messages and notifications that seem to lead on forever, but don’t actually end up taking you anywhere worthwhile Breadcrumbing is all about piquing someone’s interest without the payoff of a date or a relationship.

Caspering: Being a friendly ghost - meaning yes, you ghost, but you offer an explanation beforehand. Caspering is all about being a nice human being with common decency. A novel idea.

Catfish: Someone who uses a fake identity to lure dates online.

Clearing: Clearing season happens in January. It’s when we’re so miserable thanks to Christmas being over, the cold weather, and general seasonal dreariness, that we will hook up with anyone just so we don’t feel completely unattractive. You might bang an ex, or give that creepy guy who you don’t really fancy a chance, or put up with truly awful sex just so you can feel human touch. It’s a tough time. Stay strong.

Cloutlighting: Cloutlighting is the combo of gaslighting and chasing social media clout. Someone will bait the person they’re dating on camera with the intention of getting them upset or angry, or making them look stupid, then share the video for everyone to laugh at.

Cockfishing: Also known as catcocking. When someone sending dick pics uses photo editing software or other methods to change the look of their penis, usually making it look bigger than it really is.

Cuffing season: The chilly autumn and winter months when you are struck by a desire to be coupled up, or cuffed.

Firedooring: Being firedoored is when the access is entirely on one side, so you're always waiting for them to call or text and your efforts are shot down.

Fishing: When someone will send out messages to a bunch of people to see who’d be interested in hooking up, wait to see who responds, then take their pick of who they want to get with. It’s called fishing because the fisher loads up on bait, waits for one fish to bite, then ignores all the others.

Flashpanner: Someone who’s addicted to that warm, fuzzy, and exciting start bit of a relationship, but can’t handle the hard bits that might come after – such as having to make a firm commitment, or meeting their parents, or posting an Instagram photo with them captioned as ‘this one’.

Freckling: Freckling is when someone pops into your dating life when the weather’s nice… and then vanishes once it’s a little chillier.

Gatsbying: To post a video, picture or selfie to public social media purely for a love interest to see it.

Ghosting: Cutting off all communication without explanation.

Grande-ing: Being grateful, rather than resentful, for your exes, just like Ariana Grande.

Hatfishing: When someone who looks better when wearing a hat has pics on their dating profile that exclusively show them wearing hats.

Kittenfishing: Using images that are of you, but are flattering to a point that it might be deceptive. So using really old or heavily edited photos, for example. Kittenfishes can also wildly exaggerate their height, age, interests, or accomplishments.

Lovebombing: Showering someone with attention, gifts, gestures of affection, and promises for your future relationship, only to distract them from your not-so-great bits. In extreme cases this can form the basis for an abusive relationship.

Microcheating: Cheating without physically crossing the line. So stuff like emotional cheating, sexting, confiding in someone other than your partner, that sort of thing.

Mountaineering: Reaching for people who might be out of your league, or reaching for the absolute top of the mountain.

Obligaswiping: The act of endlessly swiping on dating apps and flirt-chatting away with no legitimate intention of meeting up, so you can tell yourself you're doing *something* to put yourself out there.

Orbiting: The act of watching someone's Instagram stories or liking their tweets or generally staying in their 'orbit' after a breakup.

Paperclipping: When someone sporadically pops up to remind you of their existence, to prevent you from ever fully moving on.

Preating: Pre-cheating - laying the groundwork and putting out feelers for cheating, by sending flirty messages or getting closer to a work crush.

Prowling: Going hot and cold when it comes to expressing romantic interest.

R-bombing: Not responding to your messages but reading them all, so you see the 'delivered' and 'read' signs and feel like throwing your phone across the room.

Scroogeing: Dumping someone right before Christmas so you don't have to buy them a present.

Shadowing: Posing with a hot friend in all your dating app photos, knowing people will assume you're the attractive one and will be too polite to ask.

Shaveducking: Feeling deeply confused over whether you're really attracted to a person or if they just have great facial hair.

Sneating:When you go on dates just for a free meal.

Stashing: The act of hiding someone you're dating from your friends, family, and social media.

Submarineing: When someone ghosts, then suddenly returns and acts like nothing happened.

V-lationshipping:When someone you used to date reappears just around Valentine's Day, usually out of loneliness and desperation.

You-turning: Falling head over heels for someone, only to suddenly change your mind and dip.

Zombieing: Ghosting then returning from the dead. Different from submarineing because at least a zombie will acknowledge their distance.

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