scrounge
Beg or borrow
Scrounge means to obtain something, usually by begging, borrowing, or foraging rather than by paying or earning it directly.
The word suggests resourcefulness mixed with desperation or cheapness: I scrounged some dinner from the back of the fridge.
To scrounge something up is to find or gather it with effort.
A person who habitually scrounges from others may be called a scrounger, usually with mild disapproval.
Obtain by begging
- cadgeObtain by begging
- bumIdle vagrant
- spongeAbsorbent cleaning material
- freeloadTake without reciprocating
panhandle · beg · solicit · hustle · wheedle · finagle · hit up · tap
Search unsystematically through clutter
- huntPursuit of quarry
- digUnearth by shoveling
- root aroundSearch by moving things aside
- siftSeparate coarse from fine
ransack · comb · poke around · ferret · nose around · rifle · pick through · dredge up
Small remaining pieces
- leftoversUneaten food kept afterward
- castoffsAbandoned possessions
- odds and endsMiscellaneous small items
- remnantsWhat stays after most goes
dregs · pickings · throwaways · discards · salvage · junk · refuse · hand-me-downs
Perform without preparation
- make doManage with insufficient resources
- cobble togetherAssemble hastily from whatever's available
- patch togetherAssemble from fragments
- get bySurvive with minimal resources
scrape by · jerry-rig · MacGyver · stretch · eke out · pinch pennies · cut corners · bootstrap
mooch
Obtain by begging
freeload · panhandle · beg · solicit · hustle · wheedle · finagle · hit up · tap · leech
rummage
Search unsystematically through clutter
- huntPursuit of quarry
- digUnearth by shoveling
- root aroundSearch by moving things aside
sift · ransack · comb · poke around · ferret · nose around · rifle · pick through · dredge up · turn over
scraps
Small remaining pieces
- leftoversUneaten food kept afterward
- castoffsAbandoned possessions
- odds and endsMiscellaneous small items
remnants · dregs · pickings · throwaways · discards · salvage · junk · refuse · hand-me-downs · crumbs
improvise
Perform without preparation
- make doManage with insufficient resources
- cobble togetherAssemble hastily from whatever's available
- patch togetherAssemble from fragments
get by · scrape by · jerry-rig · MacGyver · stretch · eke out · pinch pennies · cut corners · bootstrap · hustle
scroungepurchase
Goods obtained for payment
buy · earn · commission · pay for · procure
- scrounge upObtain with difficulty
- on the scrounge