to scratch by

6.9

To manage to live with very little money

phrasal verb
/skræʧ baɪ/

: sobrevivir

During the tough economic times, many families learned to scratch by with limited resources.

Examples

She had to scratch by while saving up for her college tuition.
This is like minor leagues you they can make extra scratch by living in a van and waking people up.
In order to make ends meet, he had to scratch by on a meager salary.

Synonyms

to get by

vsto scratch by

121 3.1

Manage to live with little money or help

stresses very limited resources and financial strain more than general coping

to scrape by

vsto scratch by

10 5.1

To manage to live with very little money

manages to survive with very limited resources rather than focusing only on money

to squeak by

vsto scratch by

Informal

4 7.2

Manage to succeed or continue with only a small amount

is about surviving with limited resources rather than narrowly barely passing

to squeeze by

vsto scratch by

Informal

1 5.8

Live with only enough money for basic needs

describes surviving with very limited resources without stressing barely enough

to scratch along

vsto scratch by

7.8

Manage to live with very little money

means surviving with very limited resources but less emphasis on extreme difficulty

to scrape along

vsto scratch by

6.9

Live with difficulty because you have little money

implies surviving with very limited resources but may be slightly broader in scope

Antonyms

to thrive

241 3.2

To grow well and be successful

to flourish

116 4.1

To grow strongly and be healthy or successful

How Well

to thrive

241 3.2

to get by

121 3.1

to scratch by

6.9

hand to mouth

Informal

2 6.3

Surface Forms

scratch by infinitive

scratched by past

scratched by past participle

scratching by present participle

scratches by third person singular

Morphology

scratch + by

If a learner knows 'scratch' as colloquial money and understands the particle 'by', they can plausibly infer 'manage on/with very little money' from the parts, so there is a detectable compositional link. However, the verb+particle pattern is not fully regular here (many speakers use 'scrape by'), and the slang sense of 'scratch' and the phrasal construction make the meaning partly idiomatic and dependent on exposure.

Etymology

Scratch by may come from the image of someone making small scratches or scrapes to pull together the last bits of food or coins. So, scratch by means 'to get by' or 'to manage to live' with very little money.