meals on wheels

noun

(sometimes initial capital letter)

1. a program, usually one supported or subsidized by a charitable, social, or government agency, for delivering hot meals regularly to elderly, disabled, or convalescing persons who are housebound and cannot cook for themselves.

meals on wheels

noun

1. (functioning as singular) social welfare a service, usually subsidized, and run by a social services department or voluntary body, which delivers hot meals to elderly or housebound people who might otherwise be unable to have them

Word History and Origins

Origin of meals on wheels¹

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

Others include short-term shelters for homeless people, survivors of domestic violence and at-risk youth; emergency shelters for people during extreme weather; soup kitchens, community food banks and food support services for the elderly, such as Meals on Wheels; healthcare services for those with mental illness and substance abuse issues; and other adult education programs.

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These include services like Meals on Wheels, which serves 260 million meals to 2 million people each year.

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Meals on Wheels fate is still uncertain.

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Leaders of Meals on Wheels, which delivers food to seniors, warned that the spending freeze had the potential to interrupt its operations.

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Because of this, I learned that Meals on Wheels and other nonprofits essentially provide quasi-official governmental services: They are funded in part by federal money that is granted to states and, in turn, distributed through state agencies.

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