social distancing

noun

medical

: the practice of maintaining a greater than usual physical distance (such as six feet or more) from other people or of avoiding direct contact with people or objects in public places during the outbreak of a contagious disease in order to minimize exposure and reduce the transmission of infection : physical distancing

San Francisco issued recommendations for social distancing on Friday, advising residents to stay home as much as possible and avoid congregating in large groups.

—Taryn Luna and Melody Gutierrez

Under a new "social distancing" strategy, handshaking could be discouraged, with other, less tactile forms of greeting taking its place.

—Rosa Silverman

The term social distancing may be foreign to some, but the concept is one often practiced during the flu season, said Dora Anne Mills, the state's former top health official and currently chief health improvement officer for MaineHealth.

—Gillian Graham

Examples of social distancing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

His first letter to the Courant focused on drive-by birthdays, COVID practice of driving by people’s homes to celebrate while social distancing. —Mike Savino, Hartford Courant, 8 July 2024

While the change was environmentally friendly, the decision was driven by social distancing protocols: Preparing one hot meal that could be served to meat-eaters, vegetarians, and those with religious restrictions rather than serving multiple options was safer and more efficient. —Jan Dutkiewicz, Vox, 2 May 2024

Instead, the administration resisted calls to advise people to stay at home and practice social distancing and was unable or unwilling to coordinate a government-wide effort among relevant agencies and departments. —Michael T. Osterholm, Foreign Affairs, 9 June 2020

While the Conservatives have traditionally been seen as a safe pair of hands, their reputation was rocked by the revelation that multiple parties were thrown inside Downing Street at a time when Johnson had placed the U.K. population under stringent COVID-19 lockdowns and social distancing rules. —Phil Boucher, Peoplemag, 5 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

2003, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

social distancing

noun

: the practice of maintaining a greater than usual physical distance (as six feet) from other people or of avoiding direct contact with people or objects in public places during the outbreak of a contagious disease