Dictionary

scariant en · NOUN

Etymology

Blend of scare + variant.

Meanings

1. (informal) An unconfirmed or unstudied variant or strain of COVID-19 that causes widespread panic.
   • Initial reactions have been sceptical at best, with prominent experts suggesting the apparent new strain looks more like a “scariant” – an unconfirmed strain causing a global scare – than a variant. 2022 January 11, Aude Mazoue, “Covid variant or ‘scariant’? Experts warn a future ‘Deltacron’ is possible”, in France24:
   • Public health officials derided the X-MPLE strain as a "scariant" last night.

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