social work

noun

Updated on: 19 Apr 2018

: any of various professional activities or methods concretely concerned with providing social services and especially with the investigation, treatment, and material aid of the economically, physically, mentally, or socially disadvantaged

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social worker

noun

See social work defined for English-language learners

See social work defined for kids

Examples of social work in a Sentence

She is doing social work.
He has a job in social work.

Recent Examples of social work from the Web

Most were focused on the lesbian, gay and bisexual part of the acronym, said Jeremy Goldbach, an associate professor of social work at the University of Southern California who specializes in LGBT issues.

— mark thiessen, chicagotribune.com, "Anchorage voters are 1st in nation to defeat transgender 'bathroom bill' referendum," 12 Apr. 2018
Most were focused on the lesbian, gay and bisexual part of the acronym, said Jeremy Goldbach, an associate professor of social work at the University of Southern California who specializes in LGBT issues.

— Washington Post, "Anchorage voters are 1st in US to defeat ‘bathroom bill’," 12 Apr. 2018
Most were focused on the lesbian, gay and bisexual part of the acronym, said Jeremy Goldbach, an associate professor of social work at the University of Southern California who specializes in LGBT issues.

— mark thiessen, BostonGlobe.com, "Anchorage voters 1st in US to reject bill restricting transgender rights," 12 Apr. 2018
Participants at the North County summit included Pamela Fox, the social work supervisor for Palomar Medical Center.

— gary warth, sandiegouniontribune.com, "North County launches regional effort to help homeless," 9 Apr. 2018
Her application was rejected at first, but the school allowed her to take courses on a trial basis; at the end of a semester, she was admitted as a regular student and went on to earn an master’s of social work.

— anne m. hamilton, courant.com, "Extraordinary Life: College And Hartford Gave Her A Focus In Life," 8 Apr. 2018
Many therapists have social work degrees; they are reimbursed at even lower rates than psychiatrists and psychologists.

— jill u. adams, Washington Post, "Regular screening can find teen depression, but getting treatment isn’t easy," 31 Mar. 2018
Thanks to the tuition waiver, Carpenter said, she is set to graduate in May from Arizona State University with a bachelor’s degree in social work.

— mary jo pitzl, azcentral, "Tuition break for foster kids is a no-brainer. But who pays the bill?," 21 Mar. 2018
The job typically involves managing community outreach, social work, and counseling.

— USA TODAY, "Women in the workforce: 20 jobs that have become dominated by women," 21 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'social work.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of social work

1847

SOCIAL WORK Defined for English Language Learners

social work

noun

: the work done by someone who works for a government or private organization that helps people who have financial or family problems

Medical Dictionary

social work

noun

: any of various professional services, activities, or methods concretely concerned with the investigation, treatment, and material aid of the economically, physically, mentally, or socially disadvantaged