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on the sick

on the sick
 adj.— «The growing number of people allegedly unable to work due to illness is strange, because the health of the population has continued to improve. But in truth, no one now expects what are known as sick certificates to indicate actual illnesses: when I ask my patients why they are “on the sick,” as they call it, the only explanation they can give is that they receive a sick certificate. And when asked why they receive a sick certificate, they reply, “Because I’m on the sick.”» —“Britain’s Sham Unemployment Drop” by Theodore Dalrymple City Journal Jan. 28, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)

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