stay the course

Idioms and Phrases

Hold or persevere to the end, as in No, he's not resigning; he's going to stay the course . This metaphoric expression, alluding to a horse running an entire race, was first recorded in 1916.

Example Sentences

“We encourage you not to pull out, stay the course and fund the study so that we can learn whether it’s good or not to buy into for the long run,” said Tracy Hernandez, chief executive of the Los Angeles County Business Federation.

From Los Angeles Times

“Right now, just stay the course.”

From Slate

Clippers coach Tyronn Lue had mostly wanted his team to stay the course while in their funk, but he also wanted his group to clean up some things.

From Los Angeles Times

Political science fundamentals would tell us that this was a "change" election year — people think the nation is heading in the wrong direction, the incumbent president is unpopular, and people's personal economic situation is stressed — but it was hard to know whetherpeople would prefer to "stay the course" or "change," because Trump was also a deeply unpopular president.

From Salon

Save funds for emergencies, create a budget, contribute to a retirement plan and stay the course in investing.

From Salon

Related Words

• endure
• hold on
• keep going
• persist
• press on
• proceed
• pursue
• stand firm