on welfare
idiom
US
: receiving money from the government because of a low income or lack of income
a family on welfare
Examples of on welfare in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
As a boy growing up on welfare in a single-parent household in the 1960s, Randolph began to resent civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
—
Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 24 May 2024
Especially at that time, people who were on welfare were being punished.
—Coco Romack, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024
In San Francisco, Mayor London Breed is pushing one ballot measure to expand police powers to use tactics like drones and surveillance cameras, and another testing single adults on welfare for drugs.
—Nicholas Riccardi, The Denver Post, 29 Feb. 2024
Even if these thinkers did not oppose the welfare state, Moyn argues, their rejection of liberal idealism set the stage for spiraling in equality and the assault on welfare in the generations that followed.
—Helena Rosenblatt, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for on welfare 
Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 24 May 2024
Especially at that time, people who were on welfare were being punished.
—Coco Romack, New York Times, 29 Feb. 2024
In San Francisco, Mayor London Breed is pushing one ballot measure to expand police powers to use tactics like drones and surveillance cameras, and another testing single adults on welfare for drugs.
—Nicholas Riccardi, The Denver Post, 29 Feb. 2024
Even if these thinkers did not oppose the welfare state, Moyn argues, their rejection of liberal idealism set the stage for spiraling in equality and the assault on welfare in the generations that followed.
—Helena Rosenblatt, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for on welfare
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'on welfare.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near on welfare
Cite this Entry
“On welfare.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on%20welfare. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share