as in to cope
to meet one's day-to-day needs
working at night paid my college tuition and enabled me to get by—but just barely
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Recent Examples of get by
With the growing popularity of agritourism, many farmers are letting the customers go into the field and pick their own, getting more dollars per pumpkin than farmers could get by selling through the markets.
—
Shelley Mitchell, The Conversation, 24 Oct. 2025
Until then, the show gets by on the charm of its supporting characters, including Noah’s brother, Sasha (Timothy Simons), and sister-in-law, Esther (Jackie Tohn).
—Kristen Baldwin, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Oct. 2025
Some can get by on five hours of sleep; some can’t.
—Rolling Stone Culture Council, Rolling Stone, 22 Oct. 2025
Jacksonville got to 4-1 by adhering to a specific diet, consisting of an elite pass defense, a serviceable run game and just enough digestible passes of their own to get by.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for get by
Shelley Mitchell, The Conversation, 24 Oct. 2025
Until then, the show gets by on the charm of its supporting characters, including Noah’s brother, Sasha (Timothy Simons), and sister-in-law, Esther (Jackie Tohn).
—Kristen Baldwin, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Oct. 2025
Some can get by on five hours of sleep; some can’t.
—Rolling Stone Culture Council, Rolling Stone, 22 Oct. 2025
Jacksonville got to 4-1 by adhering to a specific diet, consisting of an elite pass defense, a serviceable run game and just enough digestible passes of their own to get by.
—J.j. Bailey, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for get by
Recent Examples of Synonyms for get by
Verb
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How did the bands cope with all that happening at once?—
Jem Aswad,
Variety,
6 Nov. 2025
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Many turn to short-term coping strategies that undermine long-term survival, like selling off livestock.—
Nurith Aizenman,
NPR,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The firm is also a member of this year’s Change the World list, which highlights companies that are doing social good through their business models.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
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Otherwise, Craig Breslow will have a lot of explaining to do.—
Drew VonScio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Too $hort getting on it was just like the icing on the cake.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
6 Nov. 2025
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The team dealt with some tough injury luck and never got on a roll.—
Aaliyan Mohammed,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Paola says Teddy gets along well with his pack of pals.—
Chandler Boese,
Kansas City Star,
4 Nov. 2025
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Why can’t every country get along with each other?—
Kaleb Demerew,
The Conversation,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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In part, the McKinley administration standardized various press protocols and routines involved in managing the press corps—holding somewhat regular briefings, for example, and carefully timing White House announcements.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
7 Nov. 2025
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Because of delays, Peter, having committed to spending a year in Israel, turned to me to manage all aspects of this sprawling project.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Get by.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/get%20by. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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