Scratch together is a slang term that means to gather or collect something, usually money, through various means that are not necessarily legal or ethical. Some synonyms for the phrase include scrape together, cobble together, piece together, and hustle up. These terms all imply a sense of resourcefulness and determination, as if the person who is scratching together funds is working hard to make ends meet. Other related terms include rustle up, forage for, scrounge up, and gather up. The overall connotation of these words is that the person is using all available resources, however meager, to achieve their goals.