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con·tact | \ ˈkän-ˌtakt 
\
\Definition of contact
(Entry 1 of 3)
1a : union or junction of surfaces
Cooling begins when the lava makes contact with the air.
b : the apparent touching or mutual tangency of the limbs of two celestial bodies or of the disk of one body with the shadow of another during an eclipse, transit, or occultation
c(1) : the junction of two electrical conductors through which a current passes
(2) : a special part made for such a junction
The camera's flash wasn't working because the electrical contacts needed to be cleaned.
2a : association, relationship students and teachers in daily contact
b : connection, communication I lost contact with her years ago.
c : an establishing of communication with someone or an observing or receiving of a significant signal from a person or object
radar contact with Mars
3 : a person serving as a go-between, messenger, connection, or source of special information
business contacts
4 : contact lens She wears contacts more often than glasses.
contact
verbcon·tact | \ ˈkän-ˌtakt , kən-ˈtakt \
, kən-ˈtakt \contacted; contacting; contacts
Definition of contact (Entry 2 of 3)
: to make contact the point at which the two surfaces contact
1 : to bring into contact
2a : to enter or be in contact with : join The spark contacted the gunpowder.
b : to get in communication with
Contact your local dealer.
contact
adjectivecon·tact | \ ˈkän-ˌtakt \
\Definition of contact (Entry 3 of 3)
: maintaining, involving, or activated or caused by contact
contact poisons contact sports contact dermatitis
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Examples of contact in a Sentence
Noun
Physical contact between a mother and child is very important.
a disease that is spread by sexual contact Contacts between the two leaders have been frequent in recent weeks.
I applied for a job at that law firm because I have a contact there. Verb
For more information, contact the city's tourism office.
We were able to contact them by radio.
She contacted everyone on the list. Adjective
Ice hockey is a contact sport.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The player apparently had no contact with the major league side of the Yankees camp in Tampa.
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Dallas News, "Camp closed: Rangers players head for home in response to coronavirus pandemic," 15 Mar. 2020 There was no evidence the patient had close contact with an infected person or a travel history that would have exposed him, said Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Ray Sanchez, CNN, "This past week signaled a turning point in America's health emergency," 15 Mar. 2020 Low-budget carrier SpiceJet is making sure that all its check-in counter staff, boarding pass handlers, and the employees coming in direct contact with passengers should use sanitisers regularly.
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Niharika Sharma, Quartz India, "How Indian airlines are dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic," 12 Mar. 2020 Others had contact with people known to have COVID-19 or travelers from Hubei province.
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Popular Science, "COVID-19 symptoms typically appear 5 days after infection," 11 Mar. 2020 Same goes for anybody who has had close contact with any person suspected of or diagnosed with having the coronavirus, or who are being monitored as potential carriers of the virus themselves.
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Elissa Garay, Condé Nast Traveler, "Everything You Need to Know About Cruising and the Coronavirus," 9 Mar. 2020 Health officials are reaching out to those who may have had close contact with the student’s family and all families directly impacted by the announcement were alerted, the district said.
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Darcie Moran, Detroit Free Press, "South Lyon Community student positive for COVID-19," 17 Mar. 2020 The Nets are currently notifying anyone who has had contact with the players, including recent opponents, and are working closely with state and local health authorities.
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Chris Fedor, cleveland, "Kevin Durant one of four Brooklyn Nets players to test positive for coronavirus," 17 Mar. 2020 United Airlines and Air Wisconsin Airlines did not immediately respond to questions about whether their employees may have had contact with the infected individual and if they are being quarantined or monitored.
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Michael Laris, Washington Post, "FAA sends some workers home as coronavirus spreads among federal workers at airports," 17 Mar. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb But until recently, myelin biologists tended to ignore the unique type of astrocyte that contacts an axon at a node of Ranvier.
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R. Douglas Fields, Scientific American, "The Brain Learns in Unexpected Ways," 12 Mar. 2020 Firstly, the audiences for both shows are largely made up of viewers in their 60s, which are a vulnerable group in terms of contacting and succumbing to Coronavirus.
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Kelsey Hurwitz, Woman's Day, "No More Live Audiences for 'Jeopardy!' and 'Wheel of Fortune' Amid Coronavirus," 10 Mar. 2020 Allure has contacted the brand to confirmed a restock date and has yet to receive a response, but that doesn't make these lipsticks any less fun to look at.
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Nicola Dall'asen, Allure, "Here's Everything You Need to Know About the First Hermès Beauty Launch," 6 Mar. 2020 The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office cold case division is urging anyone who may have information to contact investigators.
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Megan Cassidy, San Francisco Chronicle, "Mysteries matched and solved," 6 Mar. 2020 The availability is rolling out over the next few months, and owners will be contacted by Tesla.
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Roberto Baldwin, Car and Driver, "Tesla Offers $2500 Upgraded Infotainment System for Older Vehicles," 4 Mar. 2020 The academy acknowledged that the mother and son had been present at the school between contacting the coronavirus patient and being notified of their possible infection.
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Madison Dibble, Washington Examiner, "Pence shook hands with military academy cadets whose classmate is in coronavirus quarantine," 3 Mar. 2020 The administrator would then have 75 days to contact class members and put the settlement website online.
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Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, "Did Apple throttle your iPhone? Settlement will give you a whopping $25," 3 Mar. 2020 In May 2012, for instance, Rubenstein contacted Bogot on one of Bogot’s personal email accounts seeking advice on how to help gambling locations get licensed.
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Jason Grotto, ProPublica, "Beginner’s Luck: How One Video Gambling Company Worked the Odds and Took Over a State," 3 Mar. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Contact neighborhoods reporter Ruth Serven at ruth.serven@indystar.com.
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Ruth Serven, Indianapolis Star, "Indy tightens rules to force landlords to clean up trashy houses, but realty agents say it won't matter," 10 July 2017 Sunday brunch from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Contact 847-549-1972 or www.austinssaloon.com.
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Shonda Talerico Dudlicek, Lake County News-Sun, "Libertyville's Austin Saloon adapts with owners' life changes," 20 June 2017
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'contact.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for contact
contact
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of contact
(Entry 1 of 3)
: the state or condition that exists when two people or things physically touch each other : a state of touching
: the state or condition that exists when people see and communicate with each other
: an occurrence in which people communicate with each other
contact
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of contact (Entry 2 of 3)
: to call or write to (someone or something) : to communicate with (someone or something)
contact
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of contact (Entry 3 of 3)
sports : allowing players to touch or hit each other
: acting when physical contact occurs
See the full definition for contact in the English Language Learners Dictionary
contact
nouncon·tact | \ ˈkän-ˌtakt \
\Kids Definition of contact
(Entry 1 of 3)
1 : a meeting or touching of persons or things
2 : communication with other people
Have you been in contact with her? He has no outside contact.
3 : a person someone knows who serves as a connection especially in the business or political world
I've got contacts in the company.
4 : contact lens
contact
verbcontacted; contacting
Kids Definition of contact (Entry 2 of 3)
1 : to touch or make touch physically
2 : to get in touch or communication with
contact
adjectiveKids Definition of contact (Entry 3 of 3)
: involving or activated by physical interaction
contact sports contact poisons
contact
nouncon·tact | \ ˈkän-ˌtakt \
\Medical Definition of contact
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : union or junction of body surfaces
sexual contact
2a : the junction of two electrical conductors through which a current passes
b : a special part that has been made for such a junction
3 : direct experience through the senses
loss of contact with reality
4 : contact lens
contact
adjectiveMedical Definition of contact (Entry 2 of 2)
: caused or transmitted by direct or indirect contact (as with an allergen or a contagious disease)
a contact allergy
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Time Traveler for contact
The first known use of contact was in 1626
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