节衣缩食 (jié yī suō shí) — to save on food and clothing; to live frugally (idiom)

Definition

Examples

• 为了给父母买房子，他节衣缩食了好几年。
  Wèi le gěi fù mǔ mǎi fáng zi, tā jié yī suō shí le hǎo jǐ nián.
  To buy a house for his parents, he lived frugally for several years.
• 经济不好的时候，大家只好节衣缩食过日子。
  Jīng jì bù hǎo de shí hou, dà jiā zhǐ hǎo jié yī suō shí guò rì zi.
  When the economy is bad, people have no choice but to live frugally.
• 爷爷一辈子都节衣缩食，非常节约。
  Yé ye yí bèi zi dōu jié yī suō shí, fēi cháng jié yuē.
  Grandpa lived frugally all his life; he was very thrifty.