What does "cheek-by-jowl" mean?

Alternative form of cheek by jowl.

What is a synonym for "cheek-by-jowl"?

Common synonyms include: approaching, approximate, arm in arm, burning, close, hand-in-hand.

adj, adv

adj, adv ·Rare ·Advanced level

Adjective

1
Alternative form of cheek by jowl. alt-of, alternative
"As we drove at breakneck speed through the streets, I could not help but be overwhelmed by the gaunt and desperate faces of the people, the endless squatter settlements of cheek-by-jowl, single-room shacks surrounded by ankle-deep mud, and the occasional glimpses of the rich apparently oblivious to the suffering around them."

Adverb

1
Alternative form of cheek by jowl. alt-of, alternative
"El-Amarna's crowded houses were separated not by wide streets, but by narrow, winding alleyways through piles of domestic garbage, in urban communities where everyone lived cheek-by-jowl."

"For those on the lower rungs of the economic ladder, cheek-by-jowl living is the grim reality and staying two meters apart is not an option."

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.