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welfare
[ wel-fair ]
noun
- the good fortune, health, happiness, prosperity, etc., of a person, group, or organization; well-being:
to look after a child's welfare; the physical or moral welfare of society.
- financial or other assistance to an individual or family from a city, state, or national government:
Thousands of jobless people in this city would starve if it weren't for welfare.
- (initial capital letter) Informal. a governmental agency that provides funds and aid to people in need, especially those unable to work.
welfare
/ ˈwɛlˌfɛə /
noun
- health, happiness, prosperity, and well-being in general
- financial and other assistance given to people in need
- ( as modifier )
welfare services
- Also calledwelfare work plans or work to better the social or economic conditions of various underprivileged groups
- the welfare informal.the public agencies involved with giving such assistance
- on welfarein receipt of financial aid from a government agency or other source
welfare
- Government-provided support for those unable to support themselves. In the United States, it is undertaken by various federal, state, and local agencies under the auspices of different programs, the best known of which are Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and food stamps.
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Other Words From
- anti·welfare adjective
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Word History and Origins
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Word History and Origins
Origin of welfare1
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Idioms and Phrases
- on welfare, receiving financial aid from the government or from a private organization because of hardship and need.
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Example Sentences
Many parents have been defeated in their efforts to get help from child welfare departments.
In 2011, only 27 percent of families living in poverty were receiving welfare assistance.
This year, a bare-bones welfare program will continue into the New Year without being updated.
It was a Republican Congress working with a Democratic president that succeeded in passing the welfare reform bill the first time.
Once upon a time Bill Clinton and a bipartisan congressional majority ended welfare as we once knew it.
Feeling secure regarding their happiness and welfare, she did not miss them except with an occasional intense longing.
These are obtained easily, whence follow the sinister reports that they give your Majesty, to the harm of the public welfare.
His wife was ignorant of the cause of his staying out so long, and suffered greatly from anxiety about his welfare.
Occasions happen when the removal of directors is essential to the welfare of a corporation.
I am sending this by Wong, as I am watched closely, though he pretends to be looking out only for my welfare.
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Related Words
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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