eke out

verb

eked out; eking out; ekes out

transitive verb

1

: to make up for the deficiencies of : supplement

eked out his income by getting a second job

2

: to make (a supply) last by economy

Examples of eke out in a Sentence

eked out a living from the family's small farm

Recent Examples on the Web

The ensemble eking out hope in the Terrordome includes Angela McBride (Suzette Llewellyn), a mother of two who goes on a violent rampage of justice-seeking after a gut-wrenching loss. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 30 July 2026

The whole enterprise of oil and gas exploration and extraction is grueling, and success is eked out only through hard, complicated labor, much of it done behind the scenes. — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 24 July 2026

Retail sales turned negative in May before eking out 1% growth in June. — Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 20 July 2026

Messi totaled eight goals and four assists, many of them timely as Argentina eked out instant-classic victories over Cape Verde, Egypt and England en route to Sunday’s final. — Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 19 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1596, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for eke out

• roundabout
• runabout
• sauerkraut
• thereabout
• turnabout
• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout

Kids Definition

eke out

verb

ˈēk-

1

a

: supplement entry 2

eked out their small income by working for neighbors

b

: to make (a supply) last by careful use

2

: to get with great difficulty

eked out a living from the poor soil of the family's farm