scrape by - Definition & Meaning | Lingo Dictionary

scrape by

to have just enough money or resources to survive, but not much moreto have just enough money or resources to survive, but not much more

Examples

Synonyms

manage get by scratch along squeeze by scrape by live subsist exist survive squeak by rub along scrape along

1 / 2

scrape by

Third Person

scrapes by

Present Participle

scraping by

Past Tense

scraped by

Past Participle

scraped by

1

to have just enough money or resources to survive, but not much more

The single mother with two jobs is barely scraping by.
They are scraping by on a tight budget until they find better employment.
The family had to scrape by on the little food they had during the power outage.
Many students scrape by on part-time jobs to cover their education expenses.
The artist scraped by on occasional freelance work between projects.

Synonyms:

manage get by scratch along squeeze by live subsist exist survive squeak by rub along scrape along

2

to succeed at something with the least possible effort or skill

He scraped by in the marathon, finishing just seconds before the cutoff time.
The team scraped by in the playoffs, winning each game by a single goal.
Even though he had limited knowledge of the game, he scraped by with a victory in the card tournament.
The student had to scrape by with just a few hours of sleep to meet his deadline.
Despite the tough competition, he managed to scrape by and secure the last spot on the team.