holding operation 
noun
A course of action designed to maintain the status quo under difficult circumstances: the best we can hope for is an uneasy holding operation...
- This year is much more about a holding operation, to start building things up again,’ he said.
- At first it was a holding operation, with roofs re-tiled and chimneys rebuilt.
- The barricade itself was purely a holding operation.
- (from) hand to mouth
- from head to toe (or foot)
- from hence
- from hero to zero
- fromm
- from memory
- Fromm, Erich
- from nature
- from now (or then etc.) on
- from on high
- from (or out of) nowhere
- from overseas
- from pillar to post
- (from) rags to riches
- from scratch
- from side to side
- unredacted
- unrede
- unredeemable
- unredeemed
- unredeemedly
- unredeeming
- unredressable
- unredressed
- unreduceable