sociable 1320
driving her children to sports practice, music lessons. etc,
considered as a typical example of women from the middle
to upper classes in US society
so·cia·ble¹ /'səʊʃəbəl/ adj fond of being with others; enjoy-
ing social life; friendly: a pleasant, sociable couple → oppo-
site UNSOCIABLE —bly adv —bility /ˌsəʃə'bɪləti/ n [U]
WORD CHOICE It is better to use sociable rather than social to
mean 'cheerful and friendly': to spend a sociable evening
drinking. Use social to mean a 'connected with society':
social history or b 'connected with living in a group and
meeting people': her busy social life.
sociable² n AmE for SOCIAL
so·cial¹ /'səʊʃəl/ adj 1 of human society, its organization, or
quality of life: We talked about various social questions, such
as unemployment and education. | social inequalities | social
trends → see SOCIETAL (USAGE) 2 based on rank in society
(sometimes different from wealth or political power): friends
of his own social level → see also SOCIAL CLASS, SOCIAL
MOBILITY 3 a) helping to form good relationships with
friends b) of good relationships with friends: A little social
drinking does no harm, but beware of drinking alone. | poor
social skills (=poor ability to form relationships) → see also
SOCIAL LIFE 4 [A] intended for friendly or non-business
meetings: Our firm has a good social club. 5 forming groups
or living together by nature: Ants are social insects. 6 infml
fond of being with others; sociable: I'm not feeling very social
this evening. → see also ANTISOCIAL, UNSOCIAL; see SOCIABLE
(USAGE) —ly adv: within socially acceptable limits
social² also sociable AmE — n old-fash a planned informal
friendly gathering of members of a group, club, or church
Social and Liberal Democrats, the the official name
of the Liberal Democrats, a British political party
Social Chapter, the also European Social Chapter
a document produced by the EU (=European Union) and
agreed upon by all the member countries, which contains
details of the most important employment and social rights
that should be available in these countries. The document
includes rules about working hours, working conditions,
and payment for work, health and safety, equal treatment
between men and women, and the protection of children
and young people. For many years, the Conservative gov-
ernment in the UK refused to sign the Social Chapter
because it made the minimum wage law but this policy was
changed in 1997 when the Labour Party became the govern-
ment.
social 'class n a group of people who have the same
economic and social position in society: legislation that will
affect every social class, from manual workers to peers of the
realm → see also MIDDLE CLASS, UPPER CLASS, WORKING
CLASS
social 'climber n derog a person who spends money or tries
to make friends in order to be accepted by a group of people
of a higher class
'social club n a club where its members can go to spend
time, talk, drink etc with other members
social 'conscience n [S] concern for poorer people and
their quality of life: She has a highly-developed social con-
science, and does a lot of voluntary work.
social 'contract n an agreement between a group in society
and a government that explains and limits the rights and
duties of each of them (from a book by the French thinker
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract, 1762)
social de'mocracy n [C;U] (a political and economic
system based on) the ideas of equality and public ownership
of the means of production, achieved through government
of the people by their elected representatives: Social democ-
racy gives You a voice. | Britain has never been a social
democracy.
social 'democrat n someone who supports the system of
social democracy
Social Democrat and 'Labour Party, the also the
SDLP, a political party in Northern Ireland
Social Demo'cratic Party, the also the SDP, a former
political party in the UK
'social dis ease n euph for VENEREAL DISEASE
'social drinker n a person who drinks alcohol when they
are with friends, but not when alone
'social fund n [the] (in Britain) a sum of money set aside by
the government from which certain poor people who need
money for a particular purpose can be given it
social 'graces n [P] attractive qualities with regard to
manners, appearance, speech, and behaviour: His professor
is certainly lacking in the social graces!
so·cial·ism /'səʊʃəl-ɪzəm/ n [U] (sometimes cap.) any of vari-
ous beliefs or systems (sometimes considered to include
Communism) aiming at public ownership of the means of
production and the establishment of a society in which
every person is truly equal → compare CAPITALISM, COMMU-
NISM
so·cial·ist¹ /'səʊʃəl-ɪst/ n 1 a believer in socialism 2 (usually
cap.) a member of a socialist political party 3 We are all
Socialists now quote a phrase used by a 19th century Liberal
politician, Sir William Harcourt, which people sometimes
ADAPT
socialist² adj 1 of or supporting socialism: socialist princi-
ples/ideals/tendencies 2 (usually cap.) of, supporting, or agree-
ing with any of various especially Western European parties
who support greater equality of wealth and more govern-
ment ownership of business: the Socialist manifesto
Socialist 'Workers Party, the the full name of the SWP
so·cia·lite /'səʊʃəl-aɪt/ n a person well known for going to
many fashionable parties
so·cial·ize also -ise BrE /'səʊʃəl-aɪz/ v 1 [I(with)] to spend
time with others in a friendly way: I enjoy socializing with
my students after class. → compare FRATERNIZE 2 [T] tech to
make fit or train for life in a society. —ization /ˌsəʊʃəl-
aɪ'zeɪʃən||-ʃəl-ə-/ n [U] new programmes for the socialization
of young offenders (=criminals)
socialized 'medicine n [U] AmE medical care provided by
a government and paid for by taxes → see NATIONAL HEALTH
SERVICE
'social life n [C;U] the activities one does with one's friends,
e.g. going to a party, out for dinner, or for a drink: She may
not be able to come. She has a very busy social life.
social mo'bility n [U] the ability to move into a different
social class, especially up into the higher one: He swears by
the old school tie, the ultimate aid to social mobility.
social 'science n 1 [U] also social studies the study of
people in society, usually including history, politics, ECONOM-
ICS, SOCIOLOGY, and ANTHROPOLOGY 2 [C] any of these: the
social sciences → compare NATURAL SCIENCE —entist n
social se'curity n [U] 1 BrE || welfare AmE — government
money paid to people who are unemployed, old, ill
etc 2 AmE (often cap.) the system of government payments,
especially to RETIRED people → see also DEPARTMENT OF
SOCIAL SECURITY
Social Se'curity Number abbrev. SSN n a number that
the US government gives to all working people so that they
become part of the WELFARE system. There is a similar system
in the UK, by which people are given a NATIONAL INSURANCE
NUMBER. → see also FICA, SOCIAL SECURITY
CULTURAL NOTE
People in the US often have to use their
social security number for official purposes, especially to
prove who they are. For example, if you call a bank to ask
about your account, or if you write information on an
APPLICATION form for a new job or school, you will be
asked to give your social security number. In the past, you
only got a social security number when you started
working, but now parents get a social security number for
their babies not long after they are born.
social 'service n a service that is necessary for society to
work properly and is provided by a government or sup-
ported by government money: Should the railways make a
profit or should they be regarded as a social service?
social 'services n [the P] especially BrE the special services
provided by a government or local council to help people,
such as education, health care etc: Her children were being
abused and have been taken into the care of the social services.
'social studies n [P] → see SOCIAL SCIENCE