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
The Better Sister This adaptation of Alafair Burke’s novel follows two sisters, one who is seemingly living a perfect life (Jessica Biel) and the other who is in recovery and barely scraping by (Elizabeth Banks).
—
Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 2 June 2025
Behind many crises that boil over as addiction, depression, or violence are months of scraping by, running from food pantries to housing court, cramming into shelter, waiting on treatment and going without.
—Nora McCarthy, New York Daily News, 18 May 2025
The tower proposal was eventually scraped by the prolific builder in 2018.
—Jennifer Van Grove, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 May 2025
He was confirmed 99-0 for secretary of state in the Senate, while some of Trump’s other Cabinet nominees barely scraped by or were rejected altogether.
—Haisten Willis, The Washington Examiner, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for scrape by
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 2 June 2025
Behind many crises that boil over as addiction, depression, or violence are months of scraping by, running from food pantries to housing court, cramming into shelter, waiting on treatment and going without.
—Nora McCarthy, New York Daily News, 18 May 2025
The tower proposal was eventually scraped by the prolific builder in 2018.
—Jennifer Van Grove, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 May 2025
He was confirmed 99-0 for secretary of state in the Senate, while some of Trump’s other Cabinet nominees barely scraped by or were rejected altogether.
—Haisten Willis, The Washington Examiner, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for scrape by
Cite this Entry
“Scrape by.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scrape%20by. Accessed 15 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share