scrape (the bottom of) the barrel

/skɹˈeɪp ðə bˈɒtəm ɒv ðə bˈaɹəl/

/skɹˈeɪp ðə bˈɑːɾəm ʌv ðə bˈæɹəl/

[phrase]

to scrape (the bottom of) the barrel

[PHRASE]

to have no option but to make use of people or things of very poor quality

What is the origin of the idiom "scrape the barrel" and when to use it?

The origin of the idiom "scrape the barrel" can be traced back to the literal act of scraping the bottom of a barrel. In earlier times, barrels were commonly used for storage, and when the contents of the barrel were almost depleted, one would scrape the remaining bits from the bottom. This action was often associated with collecting leftovers or obtaining the last remnants of something.

Examples

1. You really are scraping the bottom of the barrel!

2. We used to get hundreds of qualified candidates, but lately I feel like we've been scraping the barrel with the applicants we bring in.

3. I mean, the hard-luck stories, they were, you know, scraping the bottom of the barrel for on MSNBC were a joke.

4. I mean, the hard-luck stories, they were, you know, scraping the bottom of the barrel for on MSNBC were a joke.