Meaning & use
iron rations
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Meanings
nounusually pluralmilitary
A small emergency supply of long-lasting food that soldiers or travellers carry and eat only when nothing else is available.
Grammar: Normally plural: the soldiers ate their iron rations.
Patterns
- live on iron rations
- carry iron rations
The patrol had only iron rations left after three days in the hills.
He kept a tin of iron rations in his pack in case of a blizzard.
The explorers ate their iron rations only when the storm trapped them.
nounusually pluralfigurativehumorous
Very plain, minimal food or provisions, often eaten out of necessity or in hard times.
Grammar: Used figuratively, usually plural: we lived on iron rations that month.
Patterns
- on iron rations
Before payday we were on iron rations of toast and soup.
The students survived exam week on iron rations of noodles.
After the holiday overspending, the family went on iron rations for a month.
Word forms
| singular | iron ration |
|---|
Common combinations
- emergency iron rations
- The pilot carried emergency iron rations in his survival kit.
- live on iron rations
- The besieged town had to live on iron rations.
- carry iron rations
- Each climber must carry iron rations for two days.
- tin of iron rations
- He opened a tin of iron rations at the summit.
Synonyms and how they differ
- emergency supplies
- Emergency supplies is a neutral modern phrase and can include water, medicine and tools, not only food.
- provisions
- Provisions means food stores of any kind and does not suggest scarcity or a last resort.
- survival rations
- Survival rations is almost identical in meaning but sounds more modern and technical.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: iron rations or rations?
iron rations vs rations
Rations alone are any fixed allowance of food, while iron rations are specifically the emergency reserve eaten only when nothing else is available.
Practice
With the road blocked by snow, the hikers finally opened their ____.
Choose one answer.
Iron rations are emergency food kept for when nothing else is available. The other options are different fixed phrases unrelated to food.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “iron rations”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.