Pre COVID the BBC was one of my top two news sources and I never noticed the word being used until the anti vaxxers in the states started calling the COVID vaccine “the jab.”
It’s not a new term. The Wikipedia article for injections has referenced “jab” in the opening paragraph since at least 2010. I’m sure there are even better and older references, but this was quick to check.
It’s not entirely a coincidence. Many of the “US anti-vaxxers” were foreign operatives that learned UK English. That included (among other things) slang terms like jab.
In the context of the US, “the jab” stands out in a way that never did in the UK. Once you see it, it’s hard to unsee.
The British have always called them jabs. You’re looking at BBC. Shots is American and has never been used here.
Pre COVID the BBC was one of my top two news sources and I never noticed the word being used until the anti vaxxers in the states started calling the COVID vaccine “the jab.”
It’s not a new term. The Wikipedia article for injections has referenced “jab” in the opening paragraph since at least 2010. I’m sure there are even better and older references, but this was quick to check.
It’s not entirely a coincidence. Many of the “US anti-vaxxers” were foreign operatives that learned UK English. That included (among other things) slang terms like jab.
In the context of the US, “the jab” stands out in a way that never did in the UK. Once you see it, it’s hard to unsee.