three hots and a cot
Jail's bare minimum
Three hots and a cot refers to the basic provisions of three hot meals a day and a place to sleep—the minimum standard of care in institutions like jails, shelters, or the military.
The phrase often appears in discussions of prison as not much of a deterrent: Some homeless people commit minor crimes just to get three hots and a cot.
It can also describe any situation offering only bare necessities.
Protected place or structure
- mealsScheduled eating occasions
- lodgingTemporary place to stay
- bedFurniture for slumber
- roofBuilding's protective top
food · housing · survival · provisions · sustenance · board · accommodation · warmth
shelter
Protected place or structure
roof · food · housing · survival · provisions · sustenance · board · accommodation · warmth · safety
jail
Detention facility
lockup · detention · custody · sentence · convict · correctional · penitentiary · bars · warden · parole
three hots and a cotindependence
Freedom from external control
three hots and a cotfreedom
Absence of constraint
liberty · civilian life · autonomy · self-determination · independence
three hots and a cothomelessness
Lacking permanent residence
starvation · sleeping rough · destitution · going hungry · food insecurity
three, hots, thrice, thirds, thirdly, tertiary, triplet, triangle, triangular