Meaning & use
survivor benefit
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable or uncountable
A regular payment made to the family of a person who has died, usually from that person's pension or insurance record.
Grammar: Can be countable (a survivor benefit) or plural (survivor benefits) when talking about the scheme in general.
Patterns
- survivor benefit for someone
- receive survivor benefits
After her husband died, she began to receive a monthly survivor benefit.
Children under eighteen may qualify for a survivor benefit.
The plan pays a survivor benefit to the spouse of a retired worker.
Word forms
| plural | survivor benefits |
|---|
Common combinations
- claim a survivor benefit
- She went to the office to claim a survivor benefit.
- eligible for survivor benefits
- Spouses and young children are eligible for survivor benefits.
- monthly survivor benefit
- The monthly survivor benefit helped cover rent.
- pension survivor benefit
- His pension includes a survivor benefit for his wife.
- apply for survivor benefits
- You must apply for survivor benefits within a set time.
Synonyms and how they differ
- widow's pension
- Widow's pension is older and narrower, covering only a surviving wife, whereas survivor benefit covers other relatives too.
- death benefit
- Death benefit is often a single lump sum, while a survivor benefit is usually paid regularly.
- bereavement payment
- Bereavement payment is a British term for a short-term grant after a death, not a long-term pension.
Word family
- survivor noun
- a person who remains alive after others die
- survive verb
- to continue to live after an event or person's death
- survival noun
- the fact of continuing to live
- beneficiary noun
- a person who receives a benefit
Commonly confused: survivor benefit or disability benefit?
survivor benefit vs disability benefit
A disability benefit goes to someone unable to work, whereas a survivor benefit goes to family after a death.
Practice
After her father died, Lena's family began receiving a monthly ______ from his pension.
Choose one answer.
A survivor benefit is paid to relatives after someone dies. A tax refund, fine or loan does not come from a deceased person's pension.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “survivor benefit”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.