Meaning & use
skin-to-skin
Last updated
Meaning
adjectivebefore a noun
Involving direct contact between bare skin and bare skin, with nothing in between, especially between a parent and a newborn.
Grammar: Used before a noun, as in 'skin-to-skin contact'. It is not usually used after a verb.
Patterns
- skin-to-skin contact
- skin-to-skin with someone
The hospital encourages skin-to-skin contact right after birth.
She held the baby skin-to-skin for the first hour.
Skin-to-skin time helps keep newborns warm.
Common combinations
- skin-to-skin contact
- Skin-to-skin contact can help regulate a baby's heartbeat.
- skin-to-skin time
- The nurses recommend plenty of skin-to-skin time in the first days.
- hold a baby skin-to-skin
- Fathers can also hold a baby skin-to-skin to bond.
Synonyms and how they differ
- direct contact
- Direct contact is a general term; 'skin-to-skin' specifically means bare skin touching bare skin.
Commonly confused: skin-to-skin or skin deep?
skin-to-skin vs skin deep
'Skin deep' means not deep or lasting, while 'skin-to-skin' refers to physical contact between bare skins.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'skin-to-skin' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Skin-to-skin' is an adjective used before a noun or as an adverbial phrase after a verb, as in 'held her newborn skin-to-skin'. The other options either add unnecessary prepositions or misplace the phrase.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “skin-to-skin”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.