welfare mother

noun

1. the mother of dependent children who receives government welfare benefits.

Word History and Origins

Origin of welfare mother¹

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

“Do you think I’m a welfare mother?”

From Los Angeles Times

Ruby Duncan, a self-described "welfare mother" on Las Vegas's Westside, was incensed.

From Salon

But the actress has tackled her share of tough-gal roles before, including the Baltimore police officer Beadie Russell on “The Wire” and the hardened welfare mother in “Gone Baby Gone,” which earned her an Oscar nomination.

From New York Times

Said Perry, “Let her hear you up in heaven” as clips from “Julia,” “Dynasty,” the film “Claudine,” where she played a welfare mother, and other moments from her career played on a screen.

From Los Angeles Times

“I was in classes reading ‘The Other America’ and ‘Pedagogy of the Oppressed’ while I’m a welfare mother at Harvard,” she said.

From Washington Post