to scratch up
- phrasal verb
- /skræʧ ʌp/
- Informal
:
reunir
- With limited funds, they scratched up supplies for the community event from various donations.
Examples
-
This is just a list I scratched up this morning and I'm sure I've forgotten many that are that have equal right to be on this list.
-
After weeks of saving and borrowing from his friends, he finally managed to scratch up enough money for a new laptop.
-
She had to scratch up some cash by doing extra shifts to pay her bills this month.
Synonyms
56
5.7
To get together a small amount of money with difficulty
12
6.1
Gather small amounts of money or supplies with difficulty
5
4.8
Get a small amount of money or help with difficulty
1
6.5
To gather small amounts of money, food, or a few people with difficulty to do something
Antonyms
How Easy
324
3.9
∞
2.9
619
2.6
- Informal
- Informal
4
7.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
scratch + up
The general sense can be partly derived from the constituents: 'scratch' (here slang for money) names the resource and the particle 'up' commonly signals gathering or completion, so a learner who knows both could infer 'get together some money.' However, the noun sense of 'scratch' as money is colloquial and the nuance of difficulty/‘scraping together’ is metaphorical and not fully predictable, so it is not fully transparent.
Etymology
Scratch up may come from the image of someone using their fingers to scratch around pockets or under cushions and gather coins or small items up bit by bit. So the phrase means 'to get or gather money or things with difficulty'.