scrape by
phrasal verb
scraped by; scraping by; scrapes by
1
: 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.
2
: 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
Instead, Lynch barely scraped by Bella at Clash in Paris, suggesting there is more story to tell between these two stars.
—
Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The family scraped by during the Depression by renting out to boarders.
—Nino Paoli, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2025
But despite touching on the disparities of class, income and opportunity in America and the fragility — even futility — of hope for many people barely scraping by, the script’s universal truths land with a soft impact.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2025
Liverpool eventually scraped by 5-4.
—Megan Feringa, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scrape by
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Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The family scraped by during the Depression by renting out to boarders.
—Nino Paoli, Fortune, 15 Aug. 2025
But despite touching on the disparities of class, income and opportunity in America and the fragility — even futility — of hope for many people barely scraping by, the script’s universal truths land with a soft impact.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2025
Liverpool eventually scraped by 5-4.
—Megan Feringa, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scrape by
Cite this Entry
“Scrape by.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scrape%20by. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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