keep the wolf from the door
idiom
informal
: to have or earn enough money to afford things (such as food and clothing) that is needed to live
They make just enough to keep the wolf from the door.
Examples of keep the wolf from the door in a Sentence
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And all deal with American iconography: more specifically, the nation’s foundational reliance on mythology and self-dramatization and the largely detrimental impact of all of that on, well, just making love and having children and trying to keep the wolf from the door.
—
Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2025
His 14 novels were written at speed to keep the wolf from the door, and, at his lowest ebb, the jailers at bay.
—The Economist, 27 Mar. 2021
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Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Feb. 2025
His 14 novels were written at speed to keep the wolf from the door, and, at his lowest ebb, the jailers at bay.
—The Economist, 27 Mar. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Keep the wolf from the door.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/keep%20the%20wolf%20from%20the%20door. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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