get by
verb
got by; got by or gotten by; getting by; gets by
1
: to succeed with the least possible effort or accomplishment
2
: to make ends meet : survive
3
: to proceed without being discovered, criticized, or punished
Examples of get by in a Sentence
working at night paid my college tuition and enabled me to get by—but just barely
Recent Examples on the Web
Teacher pay in Mecklenburg County needs to keep up with the cost of living in Charlotte, where a household might require nearly $100,000 annually to get by.
—
Charlotte Observer, 13 Feb. 2026
Yet Garner still had to scrape to get by while her career was gaining steam in the 1990s.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 13 Feb. 2026
But the Huskies were able to get by the league’s inferior teams.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 10 Feb. 2026
The Chef follows the high-pressure environment of a top restaurant kitchen and the ongoing relationship between hedonistic single chef Dori and his employee Nimrod, a family man trying to get by.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 5 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for get by
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.
Charlotte Observer, 13 Feb. 2026
Yet Garner still had to scrape to get by while her career was gaining steam in the 1990s.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 13 Feb. 2026
But the Huskies were able to get by the league’s inferior teams.
—Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 10 Feb. 2026
The Chef follows the high-pressure environment of a top restaurant kitchen and the ongoing relationship between hedonistic single chef Dori and his employee Nimrod, a family man trying to get by.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 5 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for get by
Cite this Entry
“Get by.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/get%20by. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
