(from) hand to mouth

(from) hand to mouth

With just the bare minimum of money, food, or resources to survive, with little or nothing else to spare. Usually preceded by "live." It's been pretty hand to mouth these days. If I don't find work soon, I don't know how we'll get by. With another child on the way, it looks like we'll be living from hand to mouth for the foreseeable future.See also: hand, mouth

hand to mouth, from

With only the bare essentials, existing precariously. For example, After she lost her job she was living from hand to mouth. This expression alludes to eating immediately whatever is at hand. [c. 1500] See also: hand

(from) hand to mouth

satisfying only your immediate needs because of lack of money for future plans and investments. 1960 Lynne Reid Banks The L-Shaped Room I'm twenty-eight years old and I'm still living from hand to mouth like a bloody tramp. See also: hand, mouth