struggle meal
- noun
- /ˈstrʌɡəl miːl/
- Informal
- My go-to struggle meal is a peanut butter sandwich when I can't afford to eat out.
Examples
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She often cooks struggle meals when money is tight.
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College students often share their favorite struggle meal recipes online.
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After losing his job, he relied on struggle meals like canned soup and toast.
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I had a struggle meal for dinner last night.
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After losing his job, he relied on struggle meals like canned soup and toast.
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My go-to struggle meal is a peanut butter sandwich when I can't afford to eat out.
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College students often share their favorite struggle meal recipes online.
Synonyms
A low-cost meal from a restaurant, cafe, or food stall
Antonyms
How Cheap
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines 'struggle' (difficulty/hardship) with 'meal' to mean a meal associated with struggling — i.e., simple or inexpensive food eaten when resources are limited. This is a straightforward compositional use following common noun‑modifier patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can reasonably infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
The name struggle meal comes from the simple image of a struggle and a meal: it shows someone making a very basic, cheap meal while they have little money. Imagine opening an almost empty fridge and making toast with beans or a peanut butter sandwich to 'get by'. That's why it means 'an inexpensive and simple meal eaten when money is tight'.