scrape at the bottom of the barrel

A form of scrape the bottom of the barrel — To settle for a poor option due to a lack or unavailability of anything more favorable.

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Meanings

verbscrape at the bottom of the barrel (third-person singular simple present scrapes at the bottom of the barrel, present participle scraping at the bottom of the barrel, simple past and past participle scraped at the bottom of the barrel)

present singular third person scrapes at the bottom of the barrel · participle present scraping at the bottom of the barrel · participle past scraped at the bottom of the barrel · past scraped at the bottom of the barrel

  1. alternativeAlternative form of scrape the bottom of the barrel.
Cite this entry
APA

scrape at the bottom of the barrel. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scrape%20at%20the%20bottom%20of%20the%20barrel

MLA

“scrape at the bottom of the barrel.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scrape%20at%20the%20bottom%20of%20the%20barrel. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “scrape at the bottom of the barrel,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scrape%20at%20the%20bottom%20of%20the%20barrel.

Source: scrape at the bottom of the barrel on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.