expression, godan verb (-gu)
wade through a crowd; swim through a sea of people
Idiomatic expression describing moving through a dense crowd, often with effort. The verb 泳ぐ metaphorically suggests swimming through people.
駅前の人波を泳いで、やっと改札に着いた。
I waded through the crowd in front of the station and finally reached the ticket gate.
祭りの人波を
It's tough to swim through the festival crowd.