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sandwich generation

American  

noun

  1. the generation of people still raising their children while having to care for their aging parents.

Etymology

Origin of sandwich generation

First recorded in 1985–90

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

They also are the so-called sandwich generation — caring for children and saving for their kids’ college, while also taking care of aging parents.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 19, 2026

Tina Sadarangani is in the sandwich generation, with kids at home and aging relatives.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 13, 2026

She also often wrote about remarriage, parenthood and the strains on the so-called "sandwich generation", caring for both their children and their parents.

From BBC • Dec. 12, 2025

Workers who tend to aging parents and have children at home, the so-called sandwich generation, report even higher levels of emotional and financial strain, according to AARP.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 1, 2023

It is a concept that hits home for the sandwich generation.

From Washington Post • Sep. 17, 2020

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.