living
Usage
What are other ways to say living?
Living and livelihood (a somewhat more formal word), both refer to what one earns to keep (oneself) alive, but are seldom interchangeable within the same phrase: to earn one's living; to threaten one's livelihood. “To make a living” suggests making just enough to keep alive, and is particularly frequent in the negative: You cannot make a living out of that. “To make a livelihood out of something” suggests rather making a business of it: to make a livelihood out of knitting hats. Maintenance refers usually to what is spent for the living of another: to provide for the maintenance of someone. Maintenance occasionally refers to the allowance itself provided for livelihood: They are entitled to a maintenance from this estate.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“If you aren’t living on the edge,” he wrote, “you’re taking up too much space.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026
Those theories ended in 2023, when police arrested Heuermann, a married father-of-two living in Massapequa Park, a quiet Long Island suburb, in a run-down house where he spent his childhood.
From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026
In recent weeks, soaring gasoline prices and climbing mortgage rates pinched consumers already unhappy about the high cost of living.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
A 1970s-style outcome, or anything close to it, would have been enough to make anyone shudder — but especially retirees and others living on fixed or semi-fixed incomes.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026
I had no choice but to follow Alyx and Oliver back into the living room.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
