eke out
Britishverb
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to make (a supply) last, esp by frugal use
they eked out what little food was left
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to support (existence) with difficulty and effort
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to add to (something insufficient), esp with effort
to eke out an income with evening work
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Supplement, make last, as in The survivors eked out their food and water until they were rescued . [Late 1500s]
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Get with great difficulty or effort, as in The soil was terrible but they managed to eke out a living by rotating crops . [Early 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I still think Scotland will eke out the win, but how will Steve Clarke go about it?
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026
The S&P 500 gained 0.1% to eke out a record, and has climbed 3.5% in its nine-day run—the longest streak of daily gains since early May 2025.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
“Euphoria” “Despite grim reviews for its latest season, ‘Euphoria’ will still eke out a nomination because Zendaya can do no wrong.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
Even manufacturing managed to eke out 15,000 job gains.
From Barron's ● Apr. 3, 2026
And I know we make fun of Bunny for being such a dreadful Latinist, but he’d managed to eke out a pretty competent little English translation of the more recent entries.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
