From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishkeep your head above waterkeep your head above waterSUCCEED IN DOING somethingto manage to continue to live on your income or keep your business working when this is difficult because of financial problems For years they struggled to keep their heads above water. → head
Examples from the Corpus
keep your head above water• If I get this raise, we'll just about keep our heads above water until next year.• Coun Bergg, we are happy to report, is alive and well and keeping his head above water.• I work full time, but we're still just keeping our heads above water.• We all do, really, and we're keeping our heads above water most beautifully.• It became increasingly difficult to keep his head above water.• Pensioners already fighting to keep their heads above water are being asked to pay extra council tax to fund the refugee crisis.• Although I've been out of a job for three months, I've managed to keep my head above water.• But that will provide small comfort to poor people struggling now to keep their heads above water.• The wind and waves pushed me along as I struggled to keep my head above water.• Schools throughout the county are struggling to keep their heads above water.• In reality, Diana was struggling to keep her head above water, let alone undertake a radical management restructuring programme.• I'm just a pensioner, trying to keep my head above water. 