What and how do you mean by mush?

Make a living: eat porridge. A metaphor for barely making ends meet.

Pronunciation: hú kǒu

Citation: qing ji yun 《閱微草堂笔记-如是我闻三》："平生以館谷糊口。"

Translation: In ordinary times, one makes a living by teaching private lessons or serving as a curtain-raiser.

Quote: Guo Moruo, "Regret": "Two months of hard labor for eighty dollars to make ends meet and support the family and to help friends."

Example sentence: ? In order to support their families, the vendors work hard from morning to night.

Expanded Information

Synonyms:

1. livelihood? [ shēng jì ] An industry or occupation on which one depends to make a living. It also refers to the means of sustaining life.

Quote: People's Literature, No. 2, 1979: "Because of the compulsion of life, he had to go around looking for a way out and making a living."

2. life? [ shēng huó ] refers to various activities for survival and development.

Quote: Wei Wei, "Who is the Loveliest Person-Fire and Flame": "Their family is living so happily."

3. survive? [ shēng cún ] to live; to live on.

Citation: Lu Xun, "Huagaiji - Beijing Correspondence": "Intention to survive, but too timid, results in death."