1 C1 idiomatic informal
To manage to live or survive on very limited resources, especially money.
"After losing his job, he grubbed along on savings and the occasional odd job for nearly a year."
grub along
C1 informal intransitive
To manage to survive or get by with very little, especially financially.
In plain English
To just barely manage to live on very little money or resources.
What does "grub along" mean?
One main meaning — here's how to use it.
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To grub (dig for food like an animal) along — scraping by for survival.
Actually means
To just barely manage to live on very little money or resources.
Usage tip
Largely archaic or dialectal British English. Not commonly used in modern everyday speech. 'Grub' relates to the old sense of grubbing around for food. Learners are unlikely to encounter this in modern contexts but may find it in older literature.
Words that pair with "grub along"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
somehow barely manage survive
How to conjugate "grub along"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
grub along
I/you/we/they
3rd person
grubs along
he/she/it
Past simple
grubed along
yesterday
Past participle
grubed along
have + pp
-ing form
grubing along
continuous
Hear "grub along" in the wild
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Other ways to say "grub along"
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