scrape by
phrasal verb
scraped by; scraping by; scrapes by
1
: to live with barely enough money : to be able to buy only the things most needed
Money was tight, but we somehow managed to scrape by.
2
: to succeed at doing something but just barely
He didn't study for the exam and just barely scraped by.
Examples of scrape by in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Two other members of the moderate Blue Dog Coalition, Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez, scraped by in South Texas border districts that are predominantly Latino, a demographic that has grown more Trump-friendly in recent years.
—
Tribune News Service, Twin Cities, 9 Jan. 2025
Of every team that has started 12-1, the Chiefs have scraped by with a record low scoring margin.
—Andrew Greif, NBC News, 10 Dec. 2024
In the other, Golden State’s inefficient 31.6% night was just barely enough for Denver to scrape by with a 119-115 win that required an 11-point comeback in the last six minutes.
—Bennett Durando, The Denver Post, 6 Dec. 2024
But for many below-the-line workers, the prolonged strikes and rising costs of living have forced difficult choices: leaving L.A., pivoting to new careers or scraping by with freelance gigs and side hustles.
—Josh Rottenberg, Los Angeles Times, 30 Dec. 2024
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Tribune News Service, Twin Cities, 9 Jan. 2025
Of every team that has started 12-1, the Chiefs have scraped by with a record low scoring margin.
—Andrew Greif, NBC News, 10 Dec. 2024
In the other, Golden State’s inefficient 31.6% night was just barely enough for Denver to scrape by with a 119-115 win that required an 11-point comeback in the last six minutes.
—Bennett Durando, The Denver Post, 6 Dec. 2024
But for many below-the-line workers, the prolonged strikes and rising costs of living have forced difficult choices: leaving L.A., pivoting to new careers or scraping by with freelance gigs and side hustles.
—Josh Rottenberg, Los Angeles Times, 30 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scrape by
Dictionary Entries Near scrape by
Cite this Entry
“Scrape by.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scrape%20by. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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