The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dole \Dole\ (d[=o]l), n. [OE. deol, doel, dol, OF. doel, fr.
   doloir to suffer, fr. L. dolere; perh. akin to dolare to
   hew.]
   grief; sorrow; lamentation. [Archaic]
   [1913 Webster]

         And she died.
         So that day there was dole in Astolat.   -- Tennyson.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dole \Dole\, n. [L. dolus: cf. F. dol.] (Scots Law)
   See Dolus.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dole \Dole\, n. [AS. d[=a]l portion; same word as d[=ae]l. See
   Deal.]
   1. Distribution; dealing; apportionment.
      [1913 Webster]

            At her general dole,
            Each receives his ancient soul.       -- Cleveland.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. That which is dealt out; a part, share, or portion also, a
      scanty share or allowance.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. Alms; charitable gratuity or portion.
      [1913 Webster]

            So sure the dole, so ready at their call,
            They stood prepared to see the manna fall. --Dryden.
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            Heaven has in store a precious dole.  --Keble.
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   4. A boundary; a landmark. --Halliwell.
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   5. A void space left in tillage. --[Prov. Eng.]
      [1913 Webster]

   Dole beer, beer bestowed as alms. [Obs.]

   Dole bread, bread bestowed as alms. [Obs.]

   Dole meadow, a meadow in which several persons have a
      common right or share.

   on the dole, receiving financial assistance from a
      governmental agency, such as a welfare agency; as, after
      his unemployment benefits ran out, his family was on the
      dole for a year.
      [1913 Webster +PJC]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Dole \Dole\ (d[=o]l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Doled (d[=o]ld); p.
   pr. & vb. n. Doling.]
   To deal out in small portions; to distribute, as a dole; to
   deal out scantily or grudgingly.
   [1913 Webster]

         The supercilious condescension with which even his
         reputed friends doled out their praises to him. --De
                                                  Quincey.
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

dole
    n 1: a share of money or food or clothing that has been
         charitably given
    2: money received from the state [syn: dole, pogy, pogey]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

253 Moby Thesaurus words for "dole":
   accord, ace, adjunct, administer, administration, adversity,
   affliction, afford, aid, alimony, allocate, allocation, allot,
   allotment, allow, allowance, alms, alms fee, anguish, annuity,
   apportion, apportionment, assistance, atom, award, benefit, bestow,
   bestow on, big end, bigger half, bit, bite, bounty, budget, care,
   charity, chunk, collection, commission, communicate, compensation,
   component, confer, contingent, contretemps, contribution,
   cross section, cut, dab, deal, deal out, depletion allowance,
   destiny, detachment, detail, disbursal, disburse, disbursement,
   dish out, dispensation, dispense, disperse, dispersion, disposal,
   dispose, disposition, distribute, distribution, dividend, division,
   dole out, doling, doling out, donate, donation, donative, dot,
   dram, dribble, driblet, dwarf, end, equal share, extend, farthing,
   fate, fellowship, financial assistance, fleck, flyspeck, fork out,
   fraction, fragment, gift, gift with, give, give freely, give out,
   giving out, gobbet, grain, grant, grant-in-aid, granule, gratuity,
   grief, groat, guaranteed annual income, hair, half, half rations,
   halver, hand out, hand-out, handful, handout, heap, heartache,
   heartbreak, help, help to, helping, impart, installment, interest,
   iota, issuance, issue, item, jot, largesse, lavish, let have,
   little, little bit, lot, measure, measure out, meed,
   mere subsistence, mess, mete, mete out, minim, minimum, minutiae,
   mischance, mishap, mite, modicum, moiety, molecule, mote, nutshell,
   offer, offering, offertory, old-age insurance, ounce, parcel,
   parcel out, part, particle, particular, pass around,
   passing around, pay out, paying out, pebble, pecuniary aid,
   pension, percentage, piece, pinch, pittance, point, portion,
   portion out, pour, present, price support, proffer, proportion,
   public assistance, public welfare, quadrant, quantum, quarter,
   quota, rain, rake-off, random sample, ration, regret, relief,
   remainder, render, retirement benefits, rue, sample, sampling,
   scholarship, scrimption, scruple, section, sector, segment, serve,
   share, share out, shell out, short allowance, short commons,
   shower, slice, slip, small share, smidgen, smitch, snow, speck,
   spoon out, spoonful, spot, stake, starvation wages, stipend, stock,
   subdivision, subgroup, subscription, subsidization, subsidy,
   subspecies, subvention, support, tax benefit, tender, thimbleful,
   tiny bit, tithe, tittle, tragedy, trifling amount, trivia,
   votive offering, vouchsafe, welfare, welfare aid, welfare payments,
   whit, woe, yield