ˈsəuʃəl adj. & n. --adj. 1 of or relating to
society or
its organization. 2
concerned with the mutual relations of
human beings or of classes of human beings. 3
living in organized communities;
unfitted for a
solitary life (man is a social animal). 4 a needing
companionship;
gregarious, interdependent. b
cooperative; practising the
division of
labour. 5 existing
only as a
member of a compound
organism. 6 a (of insects) living
together in organized communities. b (of birds) nesting
near each other in communities. 7 (of plants) growing thickly together
and monopolizing the ground
they grow on. --n. a social
gathering,
esp.
one organized by a
club,
congregation, etc. øsocial
anthropology the
comparative study of peoples
through their culture and
kinship systems. social
climber derog. a
person anxious to
gain a higher social
status. social
contract (or compact) an
agreement to
cooperate for social benefits, e.g. by sacrificing
some individual freedom for
State protection. social
credit the
economic theory that the profits of
industry should be distributed to the
general public. social
democracy a socialist
system achieved by
democratic means. social
democrat a person
who advocates social democracy. social
order the
network of human relationships in society. social
realism the
expression of social or
political views in art. social
science a the
scientific study of human society and social relationships. b a
branch of
this (e.g.
politics or economics). social
scientist a
student of or
expert in the social sciences. social
secretary a person who makes arrangements for the social activities of a person or organization. social
security State assistance to
those lacking in economic security and
welfare, e.g. the
aged and the
unemployed. social service
philanthropic activity. social services services
provided by the State for the
community, esp.
education,
health, and housing. social
war hist. a war
fought between allies. social
work work of
benefit to those in
need of
help or welfare, esp.
done by specially trained
personnel. social
worker a person trained to do social work. øøsociality n. socially adv. [F social or L socialis
allied f. socius friend]
