get by

British  

verb

1. to pass; go past or overtake

2. informal (intr, adverb) to manage, esp in spite of difficulties

   I can get by with little money

3. (intr) to be accepted or permitted

   that book will never get by the authorities

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get by Idioms  

1. Move past, as in There isn't room for this car to get by .

2. Manage to succeed or get along; also, barely succeed. For example, He's getting by even though he only works half-time , or If he applied himself, Paul could be getting A's, but instead he's just getting by . [Early 1900s]

3. Be unnoticed; also, get approval or pass inspection. For example, I wonder if these errors will get by the proofreader , or He hoped the paint job would get by . [Early 1900s]

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Example Sentences

Buffett said Berkshire gets by with just one trader, adding that investment firms don’t need a lot of people to handle their trades.

From Barron's

Tomorrow Berlin wouldn’t be able to help because she’d be in a full-day intensive with a visiting Elder who was fluent in Southern Michif and Plains Cree, who had only enough English to get by.

From Literature

After remarks to business groups and comments to journalists that he had managed to get by without French for years, Rousseau faced backlash from politicians.

From Barron's

So I tried once just to have a look, but then of course Pierre immediately got by me again on the main straight and I think that was basically the story of today.

From BBC

If companies are able to get by with fewer workers, that threatens the traditional software model that charged based on “seats,” or the number of employees using an offering.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• cope
• get along
• get on
• prosper
• subsist
• thrive