swim with the tide

Idioms  

1. Go along with prevailing opinion or thought, as in Irene doesn't have a mind of her own; she just swims with the tide. In the late 1600s this idiom was also put as swim down the stream, a usage not much heard today. The present form was first recorded in 1712. For the antonym, see swim against the current.

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Example Sentences

He tries to swim with the tide, but he said wind and choppy water make progress harder.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 12, 2023

But throughout his career, Michaels has learned to swim with the tide.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 13, 2022

Other grocers, after a second look, decided to swim with the tide rather than fight it.

From Time Magazine Archive

You can swim with the tide and have peace in mind and soul, or you can thrust against it and be bruised and weary.

From The Poison Belt by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir

You want to begin right now and swim with the tide.

From Ancestors A Novel by Atherton, Gertrude Franklin Horn

Related Words

• accommodate
• accustom
• adapt
• alter
• conform
• fine-tune
• fix
• modify
• regulate
• tailor