Synonyms

cheek by jowl

Cultural

Situated side by side or in close contact: “The commuters were packed in the subway cheek by jowl.”

cheek by jowl Idioms

Side by side, close together, as in In that crowded subway car we stood cheek by jowl, virtually holding one another up. This term dates from the 16th century, when it replaced cheek by cheek.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

cheek by jowl

Juxtapositions between high and low, between the virtuous and the criminal, and these things existed cheek by jowl.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2025

Ruoff’s team has already used it to make diamond films composed of thousands of tiny crystals packed cheek by jowl.

From Science Magazine ● Apr. 24, 2024

Fans pack in cheek by jowl well before the first pitch and long after the final out.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 2, 2022

More than 22,000 people have tested positive inside jails, where inmates living cheek by jowl have been encouraged to keep wearing their masks even while they sleep.

From The Guardian ● May 29, 2021

Cahokia, however, was a huge collection of farmers packed cheek by jowl.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023