swim upstream
Fight the flow
To swim upstream is to move against the current of a river or stream, as salmon do when returning to spawn.
Figuratively, it means to go against prevailing trends, opinions, or conventions—pursuing a course that most others oppose or avoid: She's always swimming upstream, challenging ideas everyone else accepts.
The phrase implies difficulty and resistance but sometimes also independence or integrity.
- pushForce something away
- currentDirected flow of charge
- defianceOpen resistance to authority
- salmonPink-fleshed migratory fish
- spawning groundsWhere fish reproduce
fortitude · nonconformity · independence · grit · resilience · leap · contrarian · rebellion · river · resist · determination · migration · courage · beat the odds · uphill battle · strain · endurance · thrust
- fishing idiomshook line and sinker, fish out of water, the one that got away, fishing for compliments, fish or cut bait
- social conformityconformist, peer pressure, herd mentality, groupthink, follow the crowd
- independencefreedom, liberty, Independence Day, autonomy, sovereignty
- making troublemake waves, stir the pot, raise Cain, kick up a fuss, upset the apple cart
- sea idiomsall at sea, dead in the water, smooth sailing, miss the boat, rock the boat
swim upstreamgo with the flow
Accept situations without resistance
coast · glide · drift · cruise · breeze through
swim upstreamgo with the flow
Accept situations without resistance
follow the crowd · conform · fall in line · run with the pack · toe the line
swim, upstream, swims, swam, swimming, swimmer, swimmers, stream, streams