Ripped from the Headlines: March 2020: This Week In Words: March 7–13, 2020

After placing the entire country on lockdown, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte ordered that all shops except for food stores and pharmacies close. Travel within the country is severely limited as hospitals and officials struggle with a large-scale outbreak of COVID-19, with over 12,000 confirmed cases. Simptoma is Ancient Greek for "accident" or "disease." To be asymptomatic is to show no signs of illness even while testing positive for a disease.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be leaving office soon after a historic fifteen years in office. She gave a speech warning her country that the pandemic will be serious, and widespread, and will effect people's lives and the economy in ways that cannot be predicted. She said that between one and two thirds of the population might get the virus, and that people should calmly prepare to take measures to protect themselves and others.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has orchestrated a change in the constitution that would effectively allow him to remain President through 2036. He has already held the office for 20 years, including a short period during which he ruled from behind the scenes in order to get around term limits. The new move would abolish them altogether, and since he rigs the elections nobody expects him to lose.

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, shortly after touching every microphone and surface at a press conference to show he didn't take the disease seriously, tested positive for the coronavirus. As a result, the NBA suspended the rest of the season effective immediately, which meant sending a stadium full of fans home before the Jazz game against the Oklahoma City Thunder even began. Hiatus means "gap" or "opening" in Latin.

After suffering major losses in Democratic primaries, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders says he'll keep fighting to win the nomination. With a debate upcoming, observers say that's his best chance to improve his chances in the next round of primaries, though polls show him behind Biden in key states like Florida, Arizona, Ohio, and Illinois. An ideology is a belief system that forms the basis for political or other actions and movements.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 to be a pandemic. While it is spreading around the globe, there appears to be a dramatic difference in its scope depending on the scale and nature of responses to it. Some countries, notably Taiwan and Singapore, have much slower rates of spread than others. Experts say that effective early responses with frequent testing are the best way to prevent widespread infections.

After weeks of saying that the coronavirus was not serious, President Trump cancelled a number of upcoming rallies out of fear that big crowds will spread the disease. Whelm is an Old English word that's fallen out of use. It means "turned over," like a boat on the water. Overwhelm is still in common use, and means the same thing, but with the added implication that the boat is sinking.

15 rockets were fired at a military base in Iraq, killing two Americans and one British national. The rockets were fired from a pickup truck found nearby, and Iranian-backed militants are suspected to have launched the attack. The Iraqi government voted to expel all U.S. troops from the country, so the legal status of remaining troops is unlcear.

After commanding wins in Michigan and other states, Joe Biden is the clear frontrunner for the Democratic nomination. As a result, speculation is growing about who he will name as his running mate. Most observers say that it needs to be a woman, and likely a woman of color. One name that features prominently on many lists is Stacy Abrams, who narrowly lost a controversial election for the Governorship of Georgia.

President Trump gave an address from the Oval Office about the coronavirus and the government's response. His message confused many people, since it contained a number of misstatements that the White House clarified after the speech. In addition to travel restrictions on Europe, he also proposed a payroll tax cut and assistance for some businesses. Members of Congress have their own plan, which they are attempting to pass quickly.