passive smoking

American  

noun

1. the inhaling of cigarette, cigar, and pipe smoke of others, especially by a nonsmoker in an enclosed area.

---

passive smoking British  

noun

1. the inhalation of smoke from other people's cigarettes by a nonsmoker

---

Other Word Forms

• passive smoker noun

Etymology

Origin of passive smoking

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

She compared cake to passive smoking.

From BBC

"It's like passive smoking. We're talking about all children being affected by some of the kids maybe being disruptive or sleeping or any other kind of carnage that goes along with the poverty of hunger."

From BBC

As one meta-analysis of research data found in 1998, "the only factor associated with concluding that passive smoking is not harmful was whether an author was affiliated with the tobacco industry."

From Salon

The trust’s medical director, Dr David Carruthers, said his organisation’s board and clinical leaders were united in the view that eliminating passive smoking on its sites was a public health necessity.

From The Guardian

While the concept of secondhand, or passive, smoking is familiar, secondhand drinking is a growing field of study.

From The Guardian