Translation guide
To barely manage to survive or make ends meet, often through difficult or meager means.
Expressing that someone is just managing to survive financially, often with difficulty.
A common way to say 'live modestly' or 'eke out a living', emphasizing a quiet, frugal existence.
彼は年金で細々と暮らしている。
He ekes out a living on his pension.
Describing how someone manages to survive by doing a particular job or activity, often with limited resources.
A standard pattern meaning 'to make a living by/through ~'. The nuance of 'eking out' comes from the context of the means being meager.
彼女は小さな畑で野菜を作って生計を立てている。
She ekes out a living by growing vegetables in a small field.
Focusing on the difficulty of covering basic expenses.
A straightforward way to say 'life is hard' financially, implying a struggle to make ends meet.
物価が上がって生活が苦しい。
With prices rising, it's hard to eke out a living.
生計を立てる is a neutral expression for 'making a living', while 食いつなぐ emphasizes the struggle to just get by, closer to 'eking out'. Use 食いつなぐ when the means are precarious or barely sufficient.
彼は翻訳で生計を立てている。
He makes a living as a translator. (neutral)
彼は日雇いで食いつないでいる。
He ekes out a living with day labor. (struggling)
There is no direct Japanese verb for 'eke out'. Avoid trying to translate it word-for-word. Instead, use phrases that convey the idea of barely managing or struggling to survive.
Literally 'a life of barely eating', this vividly describes a hand-to-mouth existence.
彼らは食うや食わずの生活をしている。
They are eking out a living, barely scraping by.
A literary expression meaning 'to barely keep the wolf from the door'.
彼は日雇い労働で糊口をしのいでいる。
He ekes out a living by doing day labor.
Means 'to keep oneself fed by ~', implying a struggle to survive.
彼はアルバイトで食いつないでいる。
He ekes out a living with part-time jobs.
Combines 'living modestly' with a specific activity, emphasizing the meager nature of the livelihood.
彼は山奥で細々と炭焼きをして暮らしている。
He ekes out a living making charcoal deep in the mountains.
An idiomatic expression meaning 'household finances are in dire straits', like a burning cart.
収入が減って家計が火の車だ。
Our income has dropped and we're barely eking out a living.