| Library / English Dictionary |
EKE OUT
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (verb)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Obtain with difficulty
Example:
He eked out some information from the archives
Synonyms:
eke out; squeeze out
Classified under:
Verbs of buying, selling, owning
Hypernyms (to "eke out" is one way to...):
obtain (come into possession of)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s PP
Sense 2
Meaning:
Make by laborious and precarious means
Example:
He eked out a living as a painter
Synonyms:
eke out; squeeze out
Classified under:
Verbs of buying, selling, owning
Hypernyms (to "eke out" is one way to...):
bring in; clear; earn; gain; make; pull in; realise; realize; take in (earn on some commercial or business transaction; earn as salary or wages)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Sense 3
Meaning:
Supplement what is thought to be deficient
Example:
Braque eked out his collages with charcoal
Synonyms:
eke out; fill out
Classified under:
Verbs of buying, selling, owning
Hypernyms (to "eke out" is one way to...):
supplement (add as a supplement to what seems insufficient)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Sense 4
Meaning:
Live from day to day, as with some hardship
Example:
He eked out his years in great poverty
Classified under:
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations
Hypernyms (to "eke out" is one way to...):
live (lead a certain kind of life; live in a certain style)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
