public health

noun

: the art and science dealing with the protection and improvement of community health by organized community effort and including preventive medicine and sanitary and social science

Examples of public health in a Sentence

a disease that poses a serious threat to public health She got her degree in public health. Public health officials warned of an influenza outbreak.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Thousands of federal employees across the HHS earlier this month in what the Trump administration has described as a sweeping reorganization of the agency responsible for public health, food safety, and medical research. Jordan King, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Apr. 2025 Major public health organizations including the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and others have updated their guidance, now stating that no level of alcohol consumption is truly safe. Jesse Pines, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025 Ultimately, whether alcohol retailers should have exclusive rights to sell cannabis depends on balancing consumer safety, market fairness, and public health considerations. Tribune Content Agency, Mercury News, 18 Apr. 2025 President Trump on Friday swore in Mehmet Oz as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), granting the former TV host vast influence over the nation’s largest public health insurance program. Joseph Choi, The Hill, 18 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for public health

Word History

First Known Use

1617, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of public health was in 1617

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Cite this Entry

“Public health.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/public%20health. Accessed 28 Apr. 2025.

Medical Definition

public health

noun
pub·​lic health ˌpəb-lik- How to pronounce public health (audio)
: the art and science dealing with the protection and improvement of community health by organized community effort and including preventive medicine and sanitary and social science

More from Merriam-Webster on public health

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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