Pogey
/ˈpəʊɡi/ noun, slang
noun, slang ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A poorhouse, workhouse, welfare office, charity hostel, etc. countable, historical, usually
- 2 money received from the state wordnet
- 3 Government financial assistance, particularly employment insurance. Canada, often, slang, uncountable, usually
"There were no jobs for the unemployed, however. And thus many hundreds of thousands went “on the pogey,” although all available evidence indicates that they loathed doing so. To accept relief was an admission of defeat and failure, a humiliating stigma, whether the relief was indirect or direct."
Antonyms
All antonymsExample
More examples"There were no jobs for the unemployed, however. And thus many hundreds of thousands went “on the pogey,” although all available evidence indicates that they loathed doing so. To accept relief was an admission of defeat and failure, a humiliating stigma, whether the relief was indirect or direct."
Etymology
1891, meaning "poorhouse", possibly from British hobo slang. 1954 assistance.