social service

noun

plural social services

: a program or effort designed to promote human or societal well-being

specifically : organized help for people who are in need of assistance with basic needs (such as food, housing, safety, or job training) or with medical needs (such as addiction or mental illness)

—usually plural

Most states are struggling with skimpy resources and a system of uncoordinated social services that is totally inadequate to serve a population of individuals whose needs are bottomless.

—Constance Holden

… attacked the idea of social services, claiming that the only entity entitled to provide care is the church, not the government.

—Tori Otten

—often used before another noun

social service agencies

Until the bridge's closure, the island hosted and supported social service programs including homeless shelters and an addiction recovery campus.

—Ellie Wolfe

Examples of social service in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Strengthening basic social services, such as access to food, clothing, and employment training, would also address the underlying conditions that often lead to crisis, reducing the need for emergency room visits, incarceration, and hospitalization. —Sakeena Trice, New York Daily News, 22 Jan. 2026

The first of these proposals calls for a coordinated regional response to federal immigration raids, following the example set by Santa Clara County, with public outreach plans and staff trainings on how to protect residents accessing the county’s social services, courts and health care facilities. —Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 21 Jan. 2026

Members have said that the abuse occurred through over-billing, false records, identity theft, and phantom claims in Medicaid social service and health programs for the elderly, disabled, addicted, and homeless. —Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 20 Jan. 2026

Healthcare and social services dominated Indeed’s list which ranks professions on their three-year growth trends against current openings. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 20 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1761, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for social service

• interservice
• disservice
• preservice
• nervous
• nervus