Make Ends Meet, To - To juggle your finances so you don’t end up selling your cat for rent. This idiom has been doing financial gymnastics since the 1600s and is still relevant today.
Some scholars think the “ends” here are like yearbook bookends – the start and finish of your fiscal year. But, equally likely, the “ends” might be the yin and yang of income versus spending. Think of it as the annual ‘Keeping Up with the Wallet’ show, playing in every home worldwide, whether starring Herbert Hoover or the everyday Joe.
Stop scrimping long enough to laugh at this certified Hoover quote: “About the time we can make the ends meet, somebody moves the ends.”
Related and Similar Terms
- Belt-tightening - Limiting expenditure, often due to financial hardship.
- Penny-pinching - Being excessively frugal.
- Living hand to mouth - Surviving with just enough resources for basics.
- Stretching a dollar - Making the most of one’s limited money.
Synonyms
- Scrape by
- Get by
- Survive financially
- Manage to live
Antonyms
- Live in luxury
- Spend lavishly
- Extravagance
Humorous Quotes
“Money can’t buy happiness, but it sure makes living without it a lot easier.” - Unknown
“Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.” - Will Rogers
Proverbs
- “A penny saved is a penny earned.” - Benjamin Franklin
- “Cut your coat according to your cloth.” - Traditional Proverb
Recommended Reads and Entertainment
- Book: “David Copperfield” by Charles Dickens – Financial struggle galore!
- Movie: “The Pursuit of Happyness” – Will Smith shows us what it’s really like making ends meet.
- Song: “She Works Hard for the Money” by Donna Summer – A groove for every hustler.
- Poetry: “If—” by Rudyard Kipling – Keeping your head up when times are tough.
Remember, just as poets their words, so too must we balance our budgets. Cheerio, and may your expenses be as light as imagination allows!
Penny Wise, October 2023
