GETS BY Synonyms: 35 Similar and Opposite Words

gets by

verb

present tense third-person singular of get by

as in copes

to meet one's day-to-day needs working at night paid my college tuition and enabled me to get by—but just barely

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of gets by Don Diamont gets by with a little help from his friends and former costars. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Aug. 2026 That’s around $5 billion, more than eight times the amount collected in fees, and the lead left gets by far the biggest portion. — Shawn Tully, Fortune, 10 June 2026 Josh, who wants to be an investigative journalist, is an idealist in a PBS T-shirt (and with a PBS tote bag) who gets by on family money and is incapable of taking care of himself in any practical way. — Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2026 Even a guy who normally gets by with just his wallet will appreciate this best-selling bag from Osprey. — Katie Jackson, Travel + Leisure, 27 May 2026 Another entry in our recent deluge of ironic gorefests, Over Your Dead Body doesn’t really give us anything new, although for its first half at least, the picture gets by on some verve and a modicum of intelligence. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2026 There was also the City Council’s jaw-dropping decision in November to raise the annual fees for the two subsidized valet parking spots every hotel gets by 789% — from $634 to $5,000. — U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Apr. 2026 For example, a saltwater pool can increase the number of daily saves a listing gets by 11%; the same thing goes for an outdoor shower. — Sophia Beams, Better Homes & Gardens, 16 Apr. 2026 The Bears could have a chance to avenge one of their losses – to Lakeview – in the second round on Monday if Lakeview gets by Kaynor Tech in the first round. — Lori Riley, Hartford Courant, 3 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for gets by

Verb

Hollis buries herself in work in an attempt to escape her complicated grief, while aspiring filmmaker Caroline copes by making snarky remarks and bristling at her mom's efforts to connect.

— Clarissa Cruz, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026
Gemini copes through logic and distraction, while Pisces feels everything at once.

— Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 26 May 2026

Definition of copes

Verb

John teaches at a small, leafy college by day, while by night working on a book about rationalist philosopher Spinoza and dating his beautiful colleague Becca (Sofia Boutella), a professor of psychology who has a son with whom John gets along well.

— Jessica Kiang, Variety, 4 Sep. 2026
Who gets along with who, who is fighting with who, and how the dynamics within the family have shifted.

— Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 31 July 2026

Definition of gets along

Verb

So does Frédéric Fontang, who coaches Jiří Lehečka, and Michael Russell, who coaches Taylor Fritz, and Jamie Delgado, who coaches Grigor Dimitrov.

— Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
The best form of flattery is imitation, and Robert Pattinson does an incredible impression of Chris Hansen for A24’s new movie, Primetime.

— Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of does

Verb

Moore breathes life into Mona, but manages to intertwine a sense of entitlement that nods to her former life as traditional housewife.

— Cortlyn Kelly, IndieWire, 6 Sep. 2026
Benkert manages dozens of properties in Kauai and has boarded up two houses on the western side of the island.

— ABC News, ABC News, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of manages

Verb

Precious little of anything survives from a millennium ago, let alone textile, let alone narrative textile, hundreds of feet of it, unfolding in scene after scene with the colors still crisp.

— John Phipps, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2026
The wires are long gone, but wire house survives as a term for a large brokerage firm with a national network of offices.

— Brian Lund, Encyclopedia Britannica, 4 Sep. 2026