dole merchant
- noun
- Offensive
:
vividor de la asistencia social
- Critics argue that some landlords have become dole merchants by relying on tenants' welfare payments.
Examples
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The opposition leader described the company as a dole merchant exploiting government handouts.
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The article accused her of being a dole merchant amidst cuts to social programs.
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Don't be a dole merchant!
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The dole merchant took advantage of the welfare system.
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The opposition leader described the company as a dole merchant exploiting government handouts.
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Critics argue that some landlords have become dole merchants by relying on tenants' welfare payments.
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The article accused her of being a dole merchant amidst cuts to social programs.
Synonyms
8
8.0
A person who makes large unfair profits by charging high prices during a shortage
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly and compositionally derivable from 'dole' (government welfare) + 'merchant' (someone who trades or profits), so a learner who knows both words can infer a person who deals in or profits from welfare. While the negative connotation (exploitative profiteering) may require some pragmatic/cultural awareness, the basic sense is transparent through standard noun–noun compounding.
Etymology
Dole merchant compares someone to a shopkeeper: dole is government money for people in need and a merchant is a seller who makes money. So a 'dole merchant' is someone who treats welfare like a business, 'profiting from' or exploiting those payments, which is why the phrase is used in a negative way.