Keep it simple, D.I.

I really don't mean to complain about the Daily Illini for a second time, but I suppose it's easier to find fault in student publications than in something like the New York Times.

What does ekes mean?

Can you tell me off the top of your head?  If so, then I'm impressed.

"Stimulus bill ekes through Senate vote" was a headline on the front page of the DI today.

I vaguely remember learning something in my Intro to Journalism class about making stories and headlines "reader-friendly", especially considering that the majority of people who actually pick up a paper just the headlines, with some sad, dwindling statistics of those who read the lede, nut graf, et-cetera.

I didn't even read the story.  The headline was a big turn-off to my attention span.  The fact that I had to search Merriam-Webster Online to make sense of the headline was unnecessary and annoying, quite frankly.

Sorry, I'll end the suspense for those who still don't know what the word means:

Eke

Function:  transitive verb

Inflected Form(s): eked; ek-ing

1. archaic: increase, lengthen

2. to get with great difficulty-- usually used with out <eke out a living>