Rhyming expression from the idea of three hot meals daily and a bed to sleep on.
threehotsandacot (uncountable)
- (slang)Prison.
1996 January 29, Unknown, “JUST FOLKS
Homeless man who went on-line jailed on charge of stealing batteries”, inSarasota Herald-Tribune[1]:“I've never been to jail before,” [Neal] said. “But there is a bright side:three hots and a cot at taxpayer expense.”
- (slang) Basicfood andshelter.
1987 February 28,Jay Mathews, “Homeless Shelter Officials Differ on Problem’s Scope, Nature”, inThe Washington Post[2], archived fromthe original on22 February 2023:It is, said the Rev. Eugene Boutilier, emergency services issues manager for the United Way, an important part of the mix of services that better-endowed cities are trying to provide to street people. "We need more than justthree hots and a cot," he said.
2015 September 25, Sam Thielman, “New York City owes homeless aid organization $2.5m in unpaid funds”, inThe Guardian[4], archived fromthe original on8 November 2020:Doe raises the necessary money for its residents' wages; the city provides the money for "three hots and a cot".
2017, Nancy Price,Blonde Broads, College Station, T.X.: Virtualbookworm Publishing,→ISBN,page174:I guess I don't have much self-esteem. I'm grateful for thethree hots and a cot for four weeks.
