← Back to Fala2Me

squeeze by

[/skwɛz baɪ/]
verb
passar por pouco; conseguir com dificuldade
1. To pass through a tight or narrow space with difficulty
We had to squeeze by each other in the crowded hallway.
Tivemos que nos apertar um ao lado do outro no corredor lotado.
2. To manage to survive or succeed with minimal resources or by a small margin
He barely squeezed by on the exam with a passing grade.
Ele conseguiu passar por pouco na prova com uma nota mínima.
3. To narrowly avoid failure or danger
The company squeezed by during the financial crisis.
A empresa conseguiu sobreviver por pouco durante a crise financeira.
NYC Slang
make it through; barely pass
Synonyms
get byscrape bymanagepassnarrowly escape
Antonyms
failcollapsestrugglegive up

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
passar por pouco; conseguir com dificuldade
Most common usage in Brazil
Rio de Janeiro
dar um jeito; se virar
More colloquial, informal variant
São Paulo
passar apertado
Common regional variant
Portugal
passar com dificuldade; conseguir por pouco
Standard European Portuguese usage

Related Idioms & Phrases

squeeze through
squeeze into
make ends meet
get by on a shoestring
scrape by
Look up more words on Fala2Me
The free English-Portuguese dictionary with real Brazilian accents, NYC slang, conjugator and more
Open Fala2Me →