secondhand smoke

noun

: tobacco smoke that is exhaled by smokers or is given off by burning tobacco and is inhaled by persons nearby

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Since 1964, more than 2.5 million nonsmokers who didn’t smoke have died from health problems caused by exposure to secondhand smoke, according to the CDC. —

Jen Christensen, CNN, 17 Apr. 2023 Brady Seals, a manager in the carbon-free buildings program at the nonprofit clean energy group RMI and a co-author of the study, tells TIME that in-home gas cooking produces about the same level of risk for children to develop asthma as does exposure to secondhand smoke. —

Time, 10 Jan. 2023 Parikh compared it to secondhand smoke. —

Lisa Song, ProPublica, 4 June 2020 And unlike secondhand smoke, thirdhand smoke is unseen and can often go unnoticed. —

Hailey Rose Mclaughlin, Discover Magazine, 4 Mar. 2020 Nonsmokers who are exposed to secondhand smoke increase their lung cancer risk by 20% to 30%. —

Erin Prater, Fortune Well, 20 Mar. 2023 The researchers also did not collect information on the use of other products like cigars or e-cigarettes, or exposure to secondhand smoke. —

Alyssa Hui, Verywell Health, 30 Jan. 2023 Brady Seals, a co-author of the study, told TIME that in-home gas cooking produces about the same level of risk for children to develop asthma as does exposure to secondhand smoke. —

Time, 14 Jan. 2023 Smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke are associated with 8 million annual deaths worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. —

Jennifer Maloney, WSJ, 14 Dec. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'secondhand smoke.' 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

1891, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of secondhand smoke was in 1891

See more words from the same year

Dictionary Entries Near secondhand smoke

second-handedness

secondhand smoke

second head

See More Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

Style

“Secondhand smoke.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/secondhand%20smoke. Accessed 4 Jun. 2023.

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