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social studies
plural noun
: a part of a school or college curriculum concerned with the study of social relationships and the functioning of society and usually made up of courses in history, government, economics, civics, sociology, geography, and anthropology
Examples of social studies in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Bautista brought together teachers from Westmont’s English, social studies and science departments to incorporate Asian American curricula into their lesson plans.
—Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 6 June 2024
Fifty years later, John Hopper, a high school social studies teacher in Granada, Colorado, started researching what had happened down the road from his school at Camp Amache.
—Juju Chang, ABC News, 31 May 2024
Brenda spent the majority of her career teaching English language arts and social studies to middle schoolers in different districts around California’s Bay Area.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 30 May 2024
Students also take a Cognitive Ability Test, which measures reasoning skills, and potentially the Iowa Test, which measures a students’ skills in reading, language, mathematics, social studies and science.
—Rebecca Noel, Charlotte Observer, 28 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for social studies
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'social studies.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1853, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near social studies
Cite this Entry
“Social studies.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20studies. Accessed 14 Jun. 2024.
Kids Definition
social studies
plural noun
: the studies dealing with human relationships and the way society works (as history, civics, economics, and geography)
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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