subsist on

phrasal verb

subsisted on; subsisting on; subsists on

: to use (something) as a way to stay alive : to live on (something)

poor people subsisting on just one or two dollars a day

The villagers subsist almost entirely on rice and fish.

(humorous) My brother subsists on pizza.

Examples of subsist on in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Gazans are not getting enough nutrition More than 90 percent of young children and pregnant and breastfeeding women in Gaza are subsisting on two or fewer food groups, such as bread, per day. —Lauren Weber, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024

Cycads should not need watering more than once a week, even in summer and, once established, can subsist on hardly any water at all. —Joshua Siskin, Orange County Register, 30 Mar. 2024

His family is subsisting on a dwindling 440-pound bag of flour, bought with a loan. —Lynsey Addario Victoria Kim, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2024

Yoong and about 100 other dog-pushers were confined in a ramshackle complex of stilted, timber shacks with thatch roofs, which became their home for a month, subsisting on two daily meals of rice and vegetables while being feasted upon by mosquitos and assorted beasties. —TIME, 21 Mar. 2024

Imagine subsisting on just Doritos—our bodies would never flourish. —Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 26 Feb. 2024

Histories of eating disorders often begin with anorexia mirabilis (the holy loss of appetite), a medieval phenomenon of fasting saints who subsisted on little more than the Eucharist. —Anna Shechtman, Harper's Magazine, 9 Feb. 2024

Born and raised along the Scandinavian coast and subsisting on seafood, Vittrup Man suddenly crossed the sea to live and eat like a farmer in Denmark while still a teenager. —Ashley Strickland, CNN, 17 Feb. 2024

Years after amphetamines were officially banned by Major League Baseball, players still subsist on coffee, Red Bull and other energy drinks. —Rustin Dodd, Kansas City Star, 24 Jan. 2024