social welfare
Americannoun
noun
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the various social services provided by a state for the benefit of its citizens
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(capitals) (in New Zealand) a government department concerned with pensions and benefits for the elderly, the sick, etc
Etymology
Origin of social welfare
First recorded in 1915–20
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For Norwegians, English soccer is as much of a national obsession as skiing, sauna and social welfare.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
CPS workers—who are often referred to in low-income communities as “the family police”—are tasked with addressing social welfare needs after they’ve already lost the trust of families by intimidating and judging them during investigations.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
“I call this the social welfare state of two. We’ve privatized dependency within marriage.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 25, 2026
Heating payments to social welfare recipients will be extended for four weeks, and there will be enhancements to a rebate programme for hauliers.
From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2026
And it was to those with a very high IQ, he believed, that “we must look for production of leaders who advance science, art, government, education and social welfare generally.”
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
