eke

1
[ eek ]
/ ik /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR eke ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), eked, ek·ing.

to increase; enlarge; lengthen.

Verb Phrases

eke out,
  1. to make (a living) or support (existence) laboriously: They managed to eke out a living by farming a small piece of land.
  2. to supplement; add to; stretch: to eke out an income with odd jobs.

Origin of eke

1
before 1000; Middle English eken, Old English ēac(i)an (intransitive), derivative of ēaca (noun) increase; Middle English echen, Old English ēcan, variant of īecan (transitive) < West Germanic *aukjan; both akin to Old Norse auka, Gothic aukan, Latin augēre, Greek auxánein to increase, amplify

Words nearby eke

ek se, eka-, ekaterinburg, ekaterinodar, ekaterinoslav, eke, eke out, ekg, ekistic, ekistician, ekistics

British Dictionary definitions for eke out (1 of 3)

eke out

verb (tr, adverb)

to make (a supply) last, esp by frugal use they eked out what little food was left
to support (existence) with difficulty and effort
to add to (something insufficient), esp with effort to eke out an income with evening work

British Dictionary definitions for eke out (2 of 3)

eke 1
/ (iːk) /

verb

(tr) archaic to increase, enlarge, or lengthen

Word Origin for eke

Old English eacan; related to Old Norse auka to increase, Latin augēre to increase

British Dictionary definitions for eke out (3 of 3)

eke 2
/ (iːk) /

sentence connector

archaic also; moreover

Word Origin for eke

Old English eac; related to Old Norse, Gothic auk also, Old High German ouh, Latin autem but, aut or

Idioms and Phrases with eke out

eke out
1

Supplement, make last, as in The survivors eked out their food and water until they were rescued. [Late 1500s]

2

Get with great difficulty or effort, as in The soil was terrible but they managed to eke out a living by rotating crops. [Early 1800s]