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Social Work vocabulary · Adults and Vulnerable Groups

Domestic abuse

Meaning in social work, with examples

nounCore term

In social work, domestic abuse means: Controlling, threatening or violent behaviour between partners, ex-partners or family members, including emotional, financial and physical abuse.

In Turkish: aile içi şiddet, ev içi şiddet, yakın ilişkide şiddet

How it is used

The current UK legal term; 'domestic violence' and 'intimate partner violence' are also widely used. Workers talk about victims or survivors, perpetrators, coercive control and safety planning, and refer people to specialist services.

Example sentences

  1. She was referred to a specialist domestic abuse service for advice and safety planning.

  2. Domestic abuse is not only physical; controlling someone's money is also abuse.

Common collocations

  • domestic abuse service
  • survivor of domestic abuse
  • experience domestic abuse
  • domestic abuse refuge
  • perpetrator of domestic abuse
  • abuseTreatment that causes someone physical, emotional, sexual or financial harm, usually by a person they know, trust or depend on.
  • safety planA practical plan, made with the person or family, listing the steps to take and the people to contact to stay safe from a specific risk.
  • protection orderA court order that protects a person from abuse or threats, for example by banning the abuser from contacting them or coming near their home.
  • vulnerableMore likely than others to be harmed, exploited or left without support because of age, illness, disability, poverty or other circumstances.

More terms: Adults and Vulnerable Groups

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