social construct
noun
formal
: an idea that has been created and accepted by the people in a society
Class distinctions are a social construct.
Examples of social construct in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Interpreting history Modern academics argue that race is a social construct.
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Lenora Chu, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Nov. 2023
Adolescence, which society defines as the transition from childhood to adulthood, begins in biology with the onset of puberty but ends in a social construct when a person achieves independence and assumes adult roles.
—Jay N. Giedd, Scientific American, 1 May 2016
Unlike most of his white contemporaries, Du Bois did not see race as an immutable characteristic but as a social construct.
—Zachariah Mampilly, Foreign Affairs, 6 Sep. 2022
Health practitioners are increasingly concerned that because race is a social construct, and the biological mechanisms of how race affects clinical outcomes are often unknown, including race in predictive algorithms for clinical decision-making may worsen inequities.
—Anirban Basu, The Conversation, 26 May 2023
And white and Black are such a social construct, and that’s where the relief is in Europe.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Oct. 2022
But race itself is a social construct, invented by European and early American colonialists and slave traders who needed to justify their abhorrent treatment of Africans and Native Americans.
—Keith Magee, CNN, 17 May 2022
The American Academy of Pediatrics has said classification of individuals by racial groups is a social construct that shouldn’t be used as a biologic proxy to make medical determinations.
—Jennifer Calfas, WSJ, 2 May 2022
These claims are ridiculous in the face of mountains of scientific evidence showing that race is a social construct and humans of different races — categories often used in research as proxies for geographical ancestry — share 99.9% of their DNA.
—Usha Lee McFarling, STAT, 1 Feb. 2023
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Lenora Chu, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Nov. 2023
Adolescence, which society defines as the transition from childhood to adulthood, begins in biology with the onset of puberty but ends in a social construct when a person achieves independence and assumes adult roles.
—Jay N. Giedd, Scientific American, 1 May 2016
Unlike most of his white contemporaries, Du Bois did not see race as an immutable characteristic but as a social construct.
—Zachariah Mampilly, Foreign Affairs, 6 Sep. 2022
Health practitioners are increasingly concerned that because race is a social construct, and the biological mechanisms of how race affects clinical outcomes are often unknown, including race in predictive algorithms for clinical decision-making may worsen inequities.
—Anirban Basu, The Conversation, 26 May 2023
And white and Black are such a social construct, and that’s where the relief is in Europe.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Oct. 2022
But race itself is a social construct, invented by European and early American colonialists and slave traders who needed to justify their abhorrent treatment of Africans and Native Americans.
—Keith Magee, CNN, 17 May 2022
The American Academy of Pediatrics has said classification of individuals by racial groups is a social construct that shouldn’t be used as a biologic proxy to make medical determinations.
—Jennifer Calfas, WSJ, 2 May 2022
These claims are ridiculous in the face of mountains of scientific evidence showing that race is a social construct and humans of different races — categories often used in research as proxies for geographical ancestry — share 99.9% of their DNA.
—Usha Lee McFarling, STAT, 1 Feb. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'social construct.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Social construct.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20construct. Accessed 29 Nov. 2023.
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