scrape by

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

These parents are scraping by in the absence of the affordable, subsidized childcare options commonplace in other countries. — Caitlyn Collins, The Conversation, 28 Oct. 2026

Fittingly, Gentling the Horse’s overriding theme is a fascination with the oddballs who scrape by on the fringes of capitalist society. — Zach Schonfeld, Pitchfork, 26 Oct. 2026

Texas Tech Texas Tech scraped by some of its tougher opponents this year, but this week, the Red Raiders got a blowout victory against Arizona State. — Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026

Americans are stuck in an endless loop of prior authorizations, high deductibles, and coverage denials while hospital systems across the country are barely scraping by. — Wcco Staff, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026

Rhymes for scrape by

• abscissae
• adonai
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify
• brachii
• butterfly
• calculi