on the dole

idiom

: receiving money that a government (especially the British government) gives to people who do not have jobs or who are very poor
They've been on the dole for a year.
They're going on the dole.

Examples of on the dole in a Sentence

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Finally, financial analysts attack Bolsa Família for reducing inequality at the expense of overall growth, and some Brazilians still insist the cash transfers only make people more dependent on the dole. Jonathan Tepperman, Foreign Affairs, 14 Dec. 2015 My parents tolerated our weekly tryst but disapproved of Roz’s extravagance while on the dole through family loans. Jane Shore, The New Yorker, 31 July 2023

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“On the dole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on%20the%20dole. Accessed 19 Mar. 2025.

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