swim against the current

Idioms

Also,. Go against prevailing opinion or thought, as in I'm voting for him even if that is swimming against the current. Shakespeare used a similar metaphor in 2 Henry IV (5:2): “You must now speak Sir John Falstaff fair, which swims against your stream.” For the antonym, see swim with the tide.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Advice if caught includes to not try and swim against the current, but rather try and head parallel to the shore until free from its grip.

From BBC • Jun. 8, 2025

It will cause approaching fish to tingle unpleasantly and, if they push farther into the electrode array, be stunned so they can't swim against the current.

From Salon • Jun. 13, 2023

They’re put into tanks, where they will learn to swim against the current, and get big enough to be moved to saltwater tanks to grow into adults.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 7, 2023

When you swim against the current, you’re acutely aware of it.

From Slate • May 14, 2021

If these outcries of the Water Party move the public to a thirst for change, it would be prudent for us ægritudinary men not rashly to swim against the current.

From Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. V, October, 1850, Volume I. by

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023