workfare

noun

work·​fare ˈwərk-ˌfer How to pronounce workfare (audio)
: a welfare program in which recipients are required to perform usually public-service work

Examples of workfare in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Job training and workfare programs have a pretty discouraging history. — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, 25 Apr. 2018 Though still high, deprivation has fallen by nearly half — not least in places like Siklosnagyfalu, where villagers benefit from their workfare wages. — Patrick Kingsley and Benjamin Novak, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2018 But they were employed no more legitimately, and less usefully, than the New Deal workfare participants. — Conrad Black, National Review, 7 Apr. 2021 The entry of the US into the war against the Axis powers in late 1941 shifted the economy from workfare to warfare. — John P. Murphy, ARTnews.com, 5 Apr. 2026 This creates a system where workfare workers must maintain some consistent employment in order to remain eligible for critical benefits. — Adia Harvey Wingfield, Forbes.com, 30 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

work + welfare

First Known Use

1968, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of workfare was in 1968

Rhymes for workfare

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Browse Nearby Words

work experience
workfare
work farm
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Workfare.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/workfare. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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