节衣缩食

tā men jié yī suō shí dàn réng rán gōng bù qǐ ér zi shàng xué

他们节衣缩食，但仍然供不起儿子上学。

They scraped and saved, but still couldn't pay for their son's education.

wǒ men jié yī suō shí zǎn gòu le mǎi yī tái cǎi diàn de qián

我们节衣缩食，攒够了买一台彩电的钱。

By using economy in buying food and clothes, we were able to save enough money for a new colour TV set.

wèi le bǎ hái zi lā che dà tā men bù dé bù jié yī suō shí

为了把孩子拉扯大，他们不得不节衣缩食。

They had to live a frugal life in order to bring up their children.

wǒ xiàn zài bù xiǎng kāi shǐ jié yī suō shí de dù rì

我现在不想开始节衣缩食地度日。

Now, I don't want to have to start tightening my belt.