welfare en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈwɛlˌfɛə/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈwɛlˌfɛɚ/ (General-American)
Etymology
From Middle English welefare, probably from the Old English phrase wel faran (“to fare well, get along successfully, prosper”) (cognate with Middle Dutch welvare (“welfare”), Middle Low German wolvare (“welfare”), Middle High German wolvar, wolfar (“welfare”)). Equivalent to well + fare. Compare also West Frisian wolfeart, Dutch welvaart, German Wohlfahrt, Old Norse velferð (whence Swedish välfärd (“welfare”)). The first recorded use in the sense of "social concern for the well-being of children, the unemployed, etc." is from 1904 and in the sense of "organized effort to provide for maintenance of members of a group" from 1918.
Meanings
-
(uncountable, usually) Health, safety, happiness and prosperity; well-being in any respect.
Nothing was too small to receive attention, if a supervising eye could suggest improvements likely to conduce to the common welfare. Mr. Gordon Burnage, for instance, personally visited dust-bins and back premises, accompanied by a sort of village bailiff, going his round like a commanding officer doing billets.
1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XIX, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
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(US, informal, uncountable, usually) Shortened form of "welfare spending", "welfare payments", or "welfare assistance".
Oliveira seems to suggest that the Jews of Kiryas Joel are somehow gaming the welfare system to fund their lifestyles, while simultaneously acknowledging the high poverty rates in the town that qualify residents for programs like Medicaid.
2026 February 25, Arno Rosenfeld, “After Minneapolis, a YouTuber comes for Jewish ‘welfare queens’”, in The Forward, archived from the original on 27 Feb 2026:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| welfares | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
welfariat · welfare check · wealthfare · welfare trap · welfare mother · welfare queen · antiwelfare · welfare bum · corporate welfare bum · welfare-to-work · welfarite · learnfare · welfarist · animal welfare · welfare parasite · social welfare · welfare princess · welfare state · welfare capitalism · shrimp welfare · prewelfare · welfare Cadillac · welfare rat · corporate welfare · welfare economics · welfare magnet · postwelfare · welfare hotel · welfarism
Synonyms
income support · welfare assistance · public assistance · social security
Translations (98)
sl blaginja (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ml ക്ഷേമം (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · gl beneficencia (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · fi sosiaaliavustus (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · bg благоде́нствие (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · mi tokoora (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · hi कौशल (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · hu támogatás (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · be дабрабы́т (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ota عمران (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ru сча́стье (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · hi कल्याण (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ko 복지 (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · pl zasiłek (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · mk соција́лна помош (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · uk благополу́ччя (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · gl seguridade social (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · ko 행복 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · te సంక్షేమము (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · fr aide sociale (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · fi hyvinvointi (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · sk blaho (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ms کباجيقن (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ur خیریت (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · cs blaho (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · mk благосостојба (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ja 幸せ (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · hu segély (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · bg благополу́чие (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · mi tokoora (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · cmn 福利 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · fr bien-être m| (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · de Wohlfahrt (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · ar رَفَاهَة (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · tr gönenç (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · pt segurança social (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · nl welzijn (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · cmn 康樂 /康乐 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · hu jólét (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · cs blahobyt (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · he רְוָחָה (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · uk добро́бут (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · es seguridad social (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · nb velferd (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ru благополу́чие (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · pdt Heil (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · cmn 社會福利 /社会福利 (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · km ជំនួយសុខុមាលភាព (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · tr refah (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · th สวัสดิการ (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · fi sosiaalituki (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · de Sozialhilfe (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · lv labklājība (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · bg социа́лна по́мощ (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · es bienestar (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ota عمارت (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · tr yardım (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · ko 복지 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ja 福祉 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · hu juttatás (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · tr sosyal yardım (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · pl dobrobyt (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ja 幸福 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · tl kagalingan (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · pl socjal (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · de Wohlergehen (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · sv välfärd (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · pon kamwahu (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ca benestar (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · eo bonfarto (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · uk ща́стя (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ru благосостоя́ние (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · pt bem-estar (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · da velfærd (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · da forsorg (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · ru социа́льная по́мощь (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · fa رفاه (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · uk благоде́нство (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · sk blahobyt (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · hi ख़ैर (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ca benestar (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · el πρόνοια (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · gl benestar (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · cmn 福利 (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · hu boldogulás (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · de Wohlfahrt (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ja 福祉 (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · cmn 幸福 (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · th สวัสดิภาพ (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · id kesejahteraan (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · vi phúc lợi (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · be шча́сце (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · nn velferd (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · ar خَيْر (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · sk sociálna pomoc (aid, provided by a government, etc.) · da lykke (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · el ευημερία (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity) · eo bonstato (health, safety, well-being, happiness and prosperity)