social work

American  

noun

1. organized work directed toward the betterment of social conditions in the community, as by seeking to improve the condition of people in poverty, to promote the welfare of children, etc.

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social work British  

noun

1. any of various social services designed to alleviate the conditions of the poor and aged and to increase the welfare of children

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Other Word Forms

• social worker
  noun

Etymology

Origin of social work

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

social work

Kushner, now 80, graduated from college and pursued a career in family planning and social work.

From Salon ● Sep. 7, 2026

I’m a social work professor who studies how people manage their money and their well-being.

From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026

Schools that charge more than the new federal limits for degrees in fields that tend not to be high-paying — like journalism, teaching or social work — could face significant obstacles in recruiting students.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026

Walton-Cole says access issues like these were a "massive factor" in her decision to leave social work "because there's just too many barriers in the court system".

From BBC ● Jun. 14, 2026

He used the money that he made to pay bills while my mother was in school getting her social work degree.

From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds