scrape by

phrasal verb

scraped by; scraping by; scrapes by

: 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.

: 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

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.

That an independently wealthy painter who graduated from an elite university is having their work scraped by a data harvesting model? —

Oskar Oprey, Artforum, 28 Jan. 2025 The area is forecast to scrape by with overnight lows near 1 degree. —

Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 15 Jan. 2025 This could be a good defensive battle with the cleanest offense scraping by with a win. —

Jeff Howe, The Athletic, 5 Jan. 2025 John Magaro is devastating as a desperate dad who embarks on a road trip with his kids, scraping by to keep them fed and entertained, even trying to create some good memories along the way, following the death of his wife and their eviction that kicks off the movie. —

Ew Staff, EW.com, 23 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for scrape by