Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - live on

I. or live off 1. If you live on or live off a particular amount of money, you have that amount of money to buy things. Even with efficient budgeting, most students are unable to live on ?4000 per year... You’ll have enough to live on... PHRASAL VERB: V P amount, V P amount 2. If you live on or live off a particular source of income, that is where you get the money that you need. The proportion of Americans living on welfare rose... He’s been living off state benefits. PHRASAL VERB: V P n, V P n 3. If an animal lives on or lives off a particular food, this is the kind of food that it eats. The fish live on the plankton... Most species live off aquatic snails. PHRASAL VERB: V P n, V P n 4. If you say that a person lives on or lives off a particular kind of food, you mean that it seems to be the only thing that they eat, for example because they like it a lot or because they do not have other foods. The children live on chips... Their room was bare of furniture and they lived off porridge. PHRASAL VERB: V P n, V P n II. If someone lives on, they continue to be alive for a long time after a particular point in time or after a particular event. I know my life has been cut short by this terrible virus but Daniel will live on after me. PHRASAL VERB: V P