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contact

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noun

/ˈkɑnˌtækt/

singular	contact
plural	contacts

Other entries for this word

Related dictionary definitions

Get It Right!

1
[uncountable] communication between people, countries, or organizations either by talking or writing
contact between:
There has been no direct contact between the two sides in the dispute.
contact with:
Jury members must avoid contact with the defendants and their families.
have contact:
He is no longer allowed to have any contact with his children.
be in (close/regular) contact:
The school and other care organizations have been in close contact.
lose contact:
I have lost contact with most of my college friends.
get/keep/stay in contact:
Do you and Jo still keep in contact?
come into contact:
In Paris she came into contact with other young writers.
put someone in contact:
I asked her if she could put me in contact with a good piano teacher.
make contact:
I've been calling him for weeks but I still haven't made contact.
bring someone into contact:
Our work brings us into contact every day.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact
1. a.
  [uncountable] if you have contact with a new idea or way of life, you learn about it by communicating with other people
  These people have had very little contact with the modern world.
  Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact
Collocations: contact
Collocations
contact1
▪ avoid, establish, have, initiate, lose, maintain, make, renew, resume, sever
2
[uncountable] a situation in which people or things touch each other
The disease is spread through sexual contact.
on contact with:
The chemicals become activated on contact with soil.
come into contact (with):
Make sure the wires do not come into contact with water.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact
3
[countable] informal a contact lens
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact
4
[countable] someone you know who can help you, for example by finding work for you or giving you information
I'll talk to one of my contacts in the software business.
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact
5
[countable] physics a place where two electrical conductors meet and where electric current passes between them
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact
6
[uncountable] the right of a child and a parent who is not living with the child's other parent to meet regularly
Thesaurus entry for this meaning of contact

Get It Right!: contact

Get it right: contact

When contact means "communication between people, countries, or organizations," it is usually an uncountable noun, so

▪ it is hardly ever used in the plural

▪ it never comes after a or a number

✗ They live in an isolated place and have no contacts with the outside world.

✓ They live in an isolated place and have no contact with the outside world.

✗ You can only get a feel for the language by having a constant contact with native English speakers.

✓ You can only get a feel for the language by having constant contact with native English speakers.

Contact can also be a countable noun when it means "someone you know who can help you":

She used to teach in Japan, and she has a lot of useful contacts in universities there.

This is the American English definition of contact. View British English definition of contact.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to British English.

View the pronunciation for contact.

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