The adage, "There is no such thing as a free lunch," means a. even people on welfare have to pay for food. b. the cost of living is always increasing. c. people face tradeoffs.

The adage "There is no such thing as a free lunch" means people face trade offs.

Option: C

Explanation:

When the member of a society is earning the same amount of money in that case the adage there is no such thing as a free lunch is applicable. Suppose the price you paid for doing something what you did was an opportunity you can no longer enjoy.

In macro economics, economist usually use this phrase to make understand the gradual difficulties in earning where all the employees are earning same amount of salary. It reveals an relationship between decision making and consumption.

b. the cost of living is always increasing

Explanation:

It is said that people on welfare are getting free lunches but living on welfare has its own disadvantages that far outweigh the free lunch benefit.

The cost of living is incredibly high and it is particularly hard when someone is poor, the free lunch comes with tax and other commitments that would not be there if the person would just not be in a welfare scheme and be living off of their own means which they cannot.