make ends meet

make ends meet
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To have enough money to cover expenses; to get by financially; to get through the pay period (sufficient to meet the next payday).

Etymology:

Unknown. Perhaps originally referred to the ends of rope meeting, signifying continuity and therefore security and stability. Perhaps shifting later to refer to the attempt at making money last from one pay period to the next, thereby leaving no gap or break in the availability of funds.

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Collection Edit

Submitted on July 07, 2010

Additional definitions for 'make ends meet':

Make Ends Meet

To have just enough money to have things that you need

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Nearby phrases

Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to make ends meet

make book make beautiful music together make faces make hay make do with make ground make do make away make hay while the sun shines make away make fun of make hay make haste make away with

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"make ends meet." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2019. Web. 9 Dec. 2019. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/make-ends-meet_13628>.

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