Google Finds Out What Americans Are Dressing Up as on Halloween

Here is a question for our listeners: What do witches, rabbits and dinosaurs¹ have in common?

The answer? They are the top three most popular Halloween costumes this year in the United States. That information comes from data gathered by the Google News Initiative².

A special website called "Google Frightgeist" provides a look at the 500 most popular costumes this year nationwide. It also lets users³ know what costumes they are likely to see where they live on Halloween night.

Rounding out the top five most-searched costumes this year are the superhero Spider-man and Cruella De Vil, a dog-hating character from the Disney movie The Hundred and One Dalmatians. The 2021 films Cruella and Spider-Man: No Way Home are surely behind the popularity⁴ of these costumes.

Frightgeist offers more than just lists of the year's most popular costumes. It also aims to help people who do not yet know what they are going to dress up as for Halloween. And it provides suggestions for people who hope to stand out with unusual and rare costume choices.

Users can choose "show me something less popular" or "surprise me" to get truly unusual costume ideas.

For example, if you choose "witch" on the website but are looking to dress up as something less common, Frightgeist suggests ideas like "Tin Man" and "Candy Corn." The Tin Man is a character from the film and book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Frightgeist says it is the 339th most popular costume in America. It notes that you have a "shockingly⁵ low chance of running into another Tin Man costume at a party." Candy corn is a sweet food that looks like a piece of corn. It is a common thing to eat during the Halloween season. But it is a decidedly uncommon⁶ costume.

The site's "costume map" gives users a look at the most popular costumes in cities across America. For example, the top costume around Charleston, South Carolina, is an astronaut. In the northernmost part of Maine, an elephant appears to be a popular choice. And in Topeka, Kansas, you might find a frightening number of zombies wandering the streets on Halloween.

To see more costume information and to get ideas for yourself, you can visit frightgeist.withgoogle.com.

Words in This Story

witch –n. a woman who is thought to have magic powers

costume –n. the clothes that are worn by someone (such as an actor) who is trying to look like a different person or thing

character –n. a person or being who appears in a story, book, play, movie or television show

stand out –v. to be easily seen or noticed

zombie –n. a dead person who is able to move because of magic

1 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 initiative   

n.主动性，首创精神，主动权（的行动），倡议

参考例句：

• He went to see the headmaster on his own initiative.他主动去看望校长。
• His employer had described him as lacking in initiative and drive.雇主说他缺乏进取心和干劲。

3 users   

用户，使用者( user的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The new software will prove a boon to Internet users. 这种新软件将会对互联网用户大有益处。
• Ramps should be provided for wheelchair users. 应该给轮椅使用者提供坡道。

4 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

5 shockingly   

adv.骇人地，很坏地

参考例句：

• Then the young mother mentioned some shockingly modern succedaneum. 接下去，那位年轻的母亲提到一种挺新的代用品。 来自辞典例句
• A shockingly ugly old person, almost as black as coal. 是个很丑的老太婆，黑得简直象煤炭一样。 来自互联网

6 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。