# scrape by

CEFR B2 · Phrasal verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/scrape-by
Updated: 2026-10-22

## Definition

to manage to live or survive when you have very little money or just enough of what you need.

For teachers: to manage to survive or maintain a basic existence with minimal financial resources. The verb is intransitive, though it often takes a prepositional phrase starting with 'on' to indicate the source of income.

## Examples

- They have very little money and just manage to scrape by.
- After he lost his job, the family had to scrape by on his wife's small part-time salary for several months.
- While the tech giants reported record profits, many independent contractors were left to scrape by as the gig economy faced a sudden and sharp contraction.

## Pitfalls

- Not "He scrapes by his pension." but "He scrapes by on his pension." — the preposition 'on' must be used to connect the verb to the source of money or resources.

## Usage notes

- usually used when talking about money, but can also refer to passing a test with the lowest possible grade.
- Teaching tip: use the image of 'scraping' the bottom of a barrel to help students remember that this means having the absolute minimum.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.