cheek by jowl

Cultural  

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

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cheek by jowl Idioms  

1. 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.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cheek by jowl

The small concrete homes here sit cheek by jowl, hugging both sides of lanes sometimes so narrow that only one person can pass at a time.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

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

And instead of being crammed cheek by jowl in the press section, reporters, along with the justices’ law clerks, are spaced throughout the otherwise-empty chamber.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 7, 2022

“You saw scenes of people literally cheek by jowl, no distancing, nothing,” he said.

From New York Times ● Jul. 12, 2021

Here were no gold-plated buildings or great cathedrals, only shabby rows of houses, cheek by jowl.

From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood