Phrase guide

hand to mouth

adj · adv · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

adj

Meaning 1

Alternative form of hand-to-mouth.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, alternative, not-comparable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adv

Meaning 2

In a hand-to-mouth manner.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • 2014, Paul Salopek, Blessed. Cursed. Claimed., National Geographic (December 2014)https://web.archive.org/web/20150212214621/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2014/12/pilgrim-roads/salopek-text Hundreds of thousands of Syrians shelter beneath UN canvas in Jordan. In the irrigated fields of As Safi, these refugees survive hand to mouth, picking tomatoes for $11 a day.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adverb

Meaning 3

with barely enough money for immediate needs

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • they lived form hand to mouth

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.