got by

verb

past tense of get by
as in coped
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 got by Other people threw french fries and chicken bones; the cats got by. — Via Scribner, Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2026 On the play before the TD, Bachmeier chased down a bad snap that got by him and was able to throw the ball away to avoid a huge loss. — ABC News, 3 Oct. 2026 Almirón got by Sporting Kansas City defender Moisés Mosquera with several stop-and-go moves before serving a precise pass to Tomás Jacob for a score in the 13th minute. — Michael Cunningham, AJC.com, 24 Aug. 2026 His single mom, Laura, got by with assistance from the local church and benevolent relatives, including one who bought Warner football cleats. — Dan Pompei, New York Times, 21 July 2026 Cape Verde gave the defending champions a major scare on Friday, forcing extra time before Argentina got by via a late own goal in an epic Round of 32 confrontation. — Michael Lewis, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026 McCarthy drove a liner to center field that got by the diving Mangum and rolled to the wall. — CBS News, 21 June 2026 Koeninger ripped a ball to center field that got by a diving Zo Palmore scoring Davis to tie the game again, 7-7. — Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 May 2026 The Last Guest While the Pope couldn’t make it for Colbert’s final show, the host still got by with a little help from a friend. — Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 22 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for got by
  1. coped
  2. did
  3. got on
  4. got along
  5. managed
  6. survived
  7. made out
Verb
  • Kaia recently opened up about how her family coped with her brother’s addiction struggles in a Vogue interview.
    — Lara Walsh, InStyle, 21 Sep. 2026
  • More recently, consumers have coped with higher gasoline prices and shortages due to Ukrainian drone attacks that knocked out refineries.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of coped
Verb
  • Johnson’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday, nor did HUD officials.
    — Lizzie Kane, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2025
  • Wisconsin Republicans did the same last year, and similar efforts have been raised in other states.
    — Rob Picheta, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2025
Definition of did
Verb
  • The Guardians got on the board early, as Chase DeLauter drove in Steven Kwan with an RBI single in the first.
    — Ryan Morik OutKick, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026
  • The chief lawyer for Florida’s health agency, Andrew Sheeran, got on the phone with Centene’s top lawyer.
    — Christopher Spata, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of got on
Verb
  • Whether that announcement is marriage- or pickleball-related remains to be seen, but not everyone coming back together got along in the Big Brother house, so how does Chen Moonves feel about Jason De Puy and Kamu Kirk being reunited?
    — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Happily, Yarberry got along well with Doris and her husband, Jon Worrell.
    — Chris Spargo, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of got along
Verb
  • Cybersecurity And Functional Safety Are Converging Cybersecurity and functional safety have traditionally been managed as separate disciplines, although today they are increasingly considered part of the same operational risk environment.
    — Gregory Shahnovsky, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026
  • After the initial disclosure, Acme took several meetings with a mix of studios and filmmakers eager to understand how a project managed to dramatically lower costs.
    — Corbin Bolies, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of managed
Verb
  • Mandell is survived by his two children and three grandchildren.
    — Anthony Solorzano, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • His sister, Andrea Clark, 35, told the New York Post on Tuesday that her brother had been in remission from cancer since 2015 and had survived a car fire just weeks before his death.
    — Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of survived
Verb
  • If the check is made out to the new company's retirement plan, nobody will be able to cash it except the plan sponsor.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026
  • Zaslav’s top deputies also made out extremely well from the combination under new corporate parent Skydance, which closed this week, according to SEC filings.
    — Dade Hayes, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of made out

Browse Nearby Words

got back (at)
got by
gotcha
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Cite this Entry

“Got by.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/got%20by. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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