make a living
idiom
: to earn the money one needs to pay for housing, food, etc.
He made a living by working as a cook.
Examples of make a living in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The island is home to between 200-300 people, many of whom still make a living crabbing and fishing the way their ancestors once did.
—
Npr Staff, NPR, 18 Dec. 2025
Data is not available on YouTube alone, but reports suggest only about half of all full-time creators make a living wage.
—Belinda Luscombe, Time, 4 Dec. 2025
Those issues tend to negatively impact their sense of self-worth along with their ability to get a job and make a living.
—Phil Blair, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Nov. 2025
On top of the volume of work, there are other major challenges in the industry, from the struggle documentarians face to make a living through their work to how key documentary filmmaking is in times of sociopolitical unrest.
—Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for make a living
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Npr Staff, NPR, 18 Dec. 2025
Data is not available on YouTube alone, but reports suggest only about half of all full-time creators make a living wage.
—Belinda Luscombe, Time, 4 Dec. 2025
Those issues tend to negatively impact their sense of self-worth along with their ability to get a job and make a living.
—Phil Blair, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Nov. 2025
On top of the volume of work, there are other major challenges in the industry, from the struggle documentarians face to make a living through their work to how key documentary filmmaking is in times of sociopolitical unrest.
—Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for make a living
Cite this Entry
“Make a living.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/make%20a%20living. Accessed 23 Dec. 2025.
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