Showing results for "contact tracing"

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Pop Culture dictionary results for contact tracing.

contact tracing

American  

[kon-takt trey-sing] / ˈkɒn tækt ˌtreɪ sɪŋ /

noun

1. a public health measure undertaken to slow and eventually halt the spread of a disease that is transmitted person-to-person, in which people who have come in close proximity to or direct contact with an infected person are identified and monitored for signs of infection. These individuals, along with any of their contacts who manifest symptoms, are generally required to isolate themselves long enough to be treated, if necessary, before they can infect others.

   Rigorous contact tracing accompanied by widespread testing has proven effective in reducing deaths during an epidemic.

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Other Word Forms

• contact tracer
  noun
• contact trace
  verb (used with or without object)

Etymology

Origin of contact tracing

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

contact tracing

"These incidents have disrupted surveillance, case investigation, contact tracing, treatment and community engagements showing how attacks can undermine not only health services, but also the capacity to detect and contain outbreaks," said Musani.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

Bizarrely, he insists on more contact tracing, as if oblivious to the fact that identified cases are a trivial proportion of the true pandemic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Centers for Disease Control to conduct contact tracing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026

"This encouraging milestone bears witness to the effectiveness of field interventions: early detection, medical care, contact tracing and community engagement," DR Congo's Institute of Public Health wrote on social media.

From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2026

Some of those cruises are also famous in the scientific literature—one of the foundations of modern contact tracing comes from an outbreak of gastroenteritis on a cruise ship.

From Slate ● May 16, 2026