dole
part of speech
noun (the dole) (UK, Ireland, Australia, NZ informal); verb (dole out: dole, doles, doled, doling)
meaning for a pupil
1) (informal, UK/Ireland/Australia/NZ) Money that the government pays to people who have no job: «on the dole». tree →
2) (verb, «dole out») To give out small amounts of something, such as food, money or jobs, to several people. tree →
3) (old) A share of food or money given to the poor. tree →
sense in the lessons
In everyday British, Irish and Australian talk «on the dole» means out of work and living on government money; the formal name is «unemployment benefit» or «Jobseeker's Allowance». In stories and at home, a parent «doles out» sweets or chores. Phrases: «on the dole», «go on the dole», «dole queue», «dole out».
examples
- (UK) After the factory closed, he was on the dole for a year. tree →
- Mum doled out the chocolates, two each. tree →
- The teacher doled out the worksheets. tree →
- (Ireland) She signed on the dole while looking for work. tree →
- The dinner lady doled out the mashed potato. tree →
- (Australia) He's been on the dole since leaving school. tree →
note
Informal in the money sense; formal: «unemployment benefit». «Dole out» is the common verb form; past «doled out». Do not confuse with «doll» (a toy). In maths, doling out equally is sharing (division): 24 sweets doled out to 6 children is 4 each.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «dole» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.