public assistance

American  

[puhb-lik uh-sis-tuhns] / ˈpʌb lɪk əˈsɪs təns /

noun

1. government aid to poor, disabled, or aged people or to dependent children, as financial assistance or food stamps.

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public assistance British  

noun

1. payment given to individuals by government agencies on the basis of need

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Other Word Forms

• public-assistance
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of public assistance

First recorded in 1900–05

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

public assistance

When older people cannot support themselves, the costs don’t disappear — they shift to their adult children, their grandchildren, public assistance programs and communities, she said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

On March 6, 1971, a few thousand people marched down the Las Vegas Strip, clogging the glitzy artery through which the city’s money flowed, to protest cuts to public assistance for the poor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

For Americans who grimace at the thought of “big government,” this distanced Social Security from public assistance or welfare.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026

According to the National Association of Counties, 40 percent of home health aides live in low-income neighborhoods and rely on some form of public assistance; 30 percent of them are on Medicaid themselves.

From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2025

But she knew she couldn’t make it out on public assistance.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times

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