Can I replace "survive on" with "survive by"?
Native speaker’s answer
Rebecca
The usage is slightly different, but yes, you can. "Survive on" is used to show that someone has survived with the help of certain things (nouns like "creek water" and "berries"), and a verb is not needed here. If you were to use "survive by," you would need to use a verb before using the nouns. Ex: He survived on instant noodles and carbonated drinks. = He survived by eating instant noodles and drinking carbonated drinks.