eking
Stretching resources thin
Eking appears almost exclusively in the phrase eking out, meaning to make something last or stretch through careful use: eking out a living on meager wages.
The underlying verb eke, meaning to supplement or extend, survives mainly in this participial form.
You eke out existence, resources, or victories—always with effort and barely enough.
Minimal means of living
- hand-to-mouthConsuming resources immediately
- scraping byBarely having enough
- getting byBarely managing adequately
- making doUsing available resources adequately
scrounging · stretching · rationing · pinching pennies · scrimping · managing · enduring · persevering
Deficient in quantity
- scantyInsufficient in amount
- scantBarely adequate amount
- sparseThinly scattered or distributed
- bareLacking any covering
paltry · modest · limited · frugal · austere · threadbare · pittance · insufficient
Extending muscles or material
- prolongingExtending in time
- supplementingAdding to something existing
- augmentingIncreasing by addition
- paddingMaterial for cushioning
spinning out · drawing out · maximizing · conserving · husbanding · parceling · doling · portioning
Suffering from difficult circumstances
- toilStrenuous, prolonged effort
- effortApplied energy toward goals
- adversitySevere difficulty or suffering
- difficultyState of being hard
strain · exertion · labor · perseverance · grit · determination · grinding · slogging
subsistence
Minimal means of living
- hand-to-mouthConsuming resources immediately
- scraping byBarely having enough
- getting byBarely managing adequately
making do · scrounging · stretching · rationing · pinching pennies · scrimping · managing · enduring · persevering · subsisting
meager
Deficient in quantity
bare · paltry · modest · limited · frugal · austere · threadbare · pittance · insufficient · minimal
stretching
Extending muscles or material
- prolongingExtending in time
- supplementingAdding to something existing
- augmentingIncreasing by addition
padding · spinning out · drawing out · maximizing · conserving · husbanding · parceling · doling · portioning
hardship
Suffering from difficult circumstances
- toilStrenuous, prolonged effort
- effortApplied energy toward goals
- adversitySevere difficulty or suffering
difficulty · strain · exertion · labor · perseverance · grit · determination · grinding · slogging · plodding
ekingthriving
Succeeding vigorously
flourishing · prospering · abounding · luxuriating · rolling in it
- eking outObtaining with difficulty