stay afloat

Meanings

1. 1phraseintransitive

   To remain on the surface of water without sinking.

   Grammar: No object; often used with can or could: The boat stayed afloat.

   Patterns

   • stay afloat in something
   • stay afloat on something
   • keep something afloat

   The life jacket helped him stay afloat until the rescue boat arrived.

   The children learned to stay afloat by kicking their legs.

   The raft stayed afloat even in rough seas.

2. 2phraseintransitive

   To manage to keep going, especially a business or person, without running out of money.

   Grammar: No object; often suggests a struggle: The shop is barely staying afloat.

   Patterns

   • stay afloat financially
   • barely stay afloat
   • keep a business afloat

   Many small businesses are struggling to stay afloat during the recession.

   She took a second job just to stay afloat.

   The charity relies on donations to stay afloat.

Common combinations

stay afloat financially

They had to sell their car to stay afloat financially.

barely stay afloat

After the storm, the fishing boat barely stayed afloat.

keep a business afloat

The loan helped keep the business afloat for another year.

struggle to stay afloat

Without new customers, the restaurant will struggle to stay afloat.

Synonyms and how they differ

float

Float is the simple verb for being on water; stay afloat emphasizes continuing to float over time.

survive

Survive means to continue to exist; stay afloat specifically suggests avoiding financial collapse.

keep your head above water

This idiom is very close for the money sense but is more informal and dramatic.

Opposites

Word family

afloat adjective

Floating on water; also used for businesses that have enough money.

float verb

To rest or move on the surface of a liquid.

Commonly confused: stay afloat or stay afloat of?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “stay afloat”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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