passive smoking

American  

noun

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

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passive smoking British  

noun

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

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Other Word Forms

• passive smoker
  noun

Etymology

Origin of passive smoking

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

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 • Jul. 20, 2021

“No clear link between passive smoking and lung cancer,” read a 2013 headline in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, hardly a pro-tobacco publication.

From Slate • Feb. 13, 2017

By waving the threat of passive smoking, they found a tool that really works: social pressure.

From Time • Jun. 3, 2013

Says "It's on the same order of magnitude as passive smoking," an official with the World Health Organization's cancer agency says.

From New York Times • Jun. 13, 2012

If we are willing to protect adults in the workplace, then we should protect children from passive smoking when travelling in private vehicles.

From BBC • Jun. 22, 2011