sociologist

American  

[soh-see-ahl-uhj-ist, soh-shee-ahl-uhj-ist] / ˌsoʊ siˈɑl ədʒ ɪst, ˌsoʊ ʃiˈɑl ədʒ ɪst /

noun

• sociologists
  plural

1. an expert in sociology.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• sociologism
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• sociologists
  plural

Explanation

A sociologist studies how people act within societies and other groups. If you're interested in issues like gender roles, crime, or the way families interact, you might want to be a sociologist. Sociology is a social science that examines the way people work in groups, and sociologists are scientists who practice sociology. Any topic that's connected to society falls under a sociologist's expertise, including social class, family structures, religious customs, war and conflict, and much more. The word sociologist comes from sociology and its Latin root socius, "associate."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sociologist sociologists

The internet was rife with what sociologist Ray Oldenburg called “third places,” a space separate from home and work that encouraged social interaction and bred cohesion in communities.

From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026

In 2023, the then 37-year-old sociologist became the youngest ever black professor at Cambridge, telling the BBC at the time his work focused on neurodivergence and race in education.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

It also runs counter to a long history of immigration in Argentina, which has one of the world's most lenient constitutions in this regard, according to sociologist Ivan Schuliaquer.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

Musa al-Gharbi, a sociologist at Stony Brook University, tells the story of a professor at Columbia University who assigned the children’s board book, “Anti-Racist Baby,” in an introductory sociology class.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026

He was a first-year student at Dillard University, hoping to become a sociologist, to “do something for our people.”

From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin

He believes sociologists owe it to students and the public to be transparent about these failures, including years of compromised research.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026

The president said economists are “simply sociologists who know a little bit of mathematics, nothing more,” referring to Velarde after he warned of the downsides of jacking up public worker payments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 13, 2026

New research by the Protest Project, led by sociologists Dana Fisher and Arman Azedi, suggests that No Kings is having a positive effect on encouraging political engagement, efficacy and momentum among participants.

From Salon ● Apr. 4, 2026

To understand the fascination, two sociologists spoke to more than 160 "Bigfooters" who are serious about collecting evidence that the beast is real.

From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2026

“Let those sociologists stuff this in their collective pipe. Puts the kibosh on the deprivation-breeds-antisocial-behavior chestnut. This Fowl character has never gone hungry in his life.”

From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer