social work

noun

Definition of social work

: 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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Examples of social work in a Sentence

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

Recent Examples on the Web

For the past 10 years, the University of Washington professor of social work and researcher has been conducting the first, national longitudinal study of aging members of the LGBTQ community called Aging with Pride. — Nicole Brodeur, The Seattle Times, "Are LGBTQ seniors dying of loneliness? It’s possible, research says," 11 Apr. 2019 Kelley Kitley was a seemingly successful wife and mother of four in Oak Park who had her own social work practice and ran marathons. — Kate Thayer, chicagotribune.com, "'Binge drinking has become completely normalized': Has boozy mom culture gone too far?," 18 Apr. 2018 The curriculum complements the work done in the behavioral sciences, criminal justice, nursing, and social work. — Karen Farkas, cleveland.com, "John Carroll University to offer certificate for substance-abuse counseling," 16 Apr. 2018 Currently, a 6-foot-high galvanized chain-link fence surrounds the library, undergraduate and school of social work buildings at the former campus. — Mikaela Porter, courant.com, "Malloy Says Financial Tech Company Will Relocate To Former UConn Campus In West Hartford," 3 July 2018 The groom’s mother retired as a social work program specialist there for the state of Alabama. — New York Times, "Susan Liu, William Sankey Jr.," 1 July 2018 Pals must be enrolled in a 4-year college, or be working on a masters degree, a social work degree, or a nursing or medical degree. — Tara Bahrampour, ajc, "College students moonlight as ‘grandkids’ for hire," 22 June 2018 Pals must be enrolled in a 4-year college, or be working on a masters degree, a social work degree, or a nursing or medical degree. — Tara Bahrampour, chicagotribune.com, "These college students moonlight as 'grandkids' for hire. Seniors love it.," 20 June 2018 Gilmore said nearly every other state does not require licensure, and that a handful of states do not require social workers to have social work degrees, but instead degrees in related fields, such as psychology. — Laura Bauer And Hunter Woodall, kansascity, "Kansas child welfare leader says more money, employees needed to fix troubled system | The Kansas City Star," 23 Apr. 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.

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Last Updated

16 May 2019

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Time Traveler for social work

The first known use of social work was in 1847

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More Definitions for social work

social work

noun

English Language Learners Definition of social work

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

See the full definition for social work in the English Language Learners Dictionary

social work

noun

Medical Definition of social work

: 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