social

Definition of Social

(adjective) Relating to society.

Social Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: so·cial

Audio Pronunciation

International Phonetic Alphabet

• American English – /ˈsoʊʃ(ə)l/
• British English – /ˈsəʊʃl/

Usage Notes

• Also called societal.
• Sociologists (adverb) socially study society.

Related Videos

Additional Information

• Word origin of “social” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com

Related Terms

• authority
• class
• division of labor
• institution
• population
• socialization
• structure
• study
• system

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Cite the Definition of Social

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “social.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved January 20, 2025 (https://sociologydictionary.org/social/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

social. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/social/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “social.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed January 20, 2025. https://sociologydictionary.org/social/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

“social.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 20 Jan. 2025. <https://sociologydictionary.org/social/>.