bread line
Definition
Noun: A line or queue of people waiting to receive free food, typically provided by a charitable organization, government agency, or soup kitchen, especially during times of economic hardship.
Usage
The term "bread line" is used to describe the physical queue itself. It specifically refers to a line formed by people in need, waiting for basic sustenance. It is a concrete image often associated with poverty, depression, and economic crisis.
Examples
- During the Great Depression, thousands of men stood in the bread line every day.
- The photograph of the long bread line became a powerful symbol of the city's poverty.
- Volunteers helped serve meals to the people in the bread line.
Advanced Usage
- "To be on the bread line": This idiom means to be in a state of poverty or destitution, dependent on charity for food. It describes a person's economic condition rather than the physical act of standing in line.
- After losing his job, he feared his family would end up on the bread line.
Variants and Related Words
- Soup kitchen (n): A place where free food, usually soup and bread, is served to people in need. People in a bread line are often waiting to enter a soup kitchen.
- Food line (n): A more general, modern synonym for "bread line."
Synonyms
- Food queue
- Relief line
Related Idioms
- "On the bread line": As described in Advanced Usage, this idiom signifies a state of extreme financial need and reliance on charitable aid for basic necessities.
Noun
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a queue of people waiting for free food
