floating

[ floh-ting ]

/ ˈfloʊ tɪŋ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR floating ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

being buoyed up on water or other liquid.

having little or no attachment to a particular place; moving from one place to another: a floating work force.

Pathology. away from its proper position, especially in a downward direction: a floating kidney.

not fixed or settled in a definite place or state: a floating population.

Finance.

in circulation or use, or not permanently invested, as capital.
composed of sums due within a short time: a floating debt.

Machinery.

having a soft suspension greatly reducing vibrations between the suspended part and its support.
working smoothly.

Origin of floating

First recorded in 1555–65; float + -ing²

OTHER WORDS FROM floating

float·ing·ly, adverb non·float·ing, adjective non·float·ing·ly, adverb un·float·ing, adjective

Words nearby floating

floatboard, floatcut file, floatel, floater, floaters, floating, floating assets, floating cartilage, floating charge, floating cloud, the, floating debt

Definition for floating (2 of 2)

float

[ floht ]

/ floʊt /

verb (used without object)

to rest or remain on the surface of a liquid; be buoyant: The hollow ball floated.

to move gently on the surface of a liquid; drift along: The canoe floated downstream.

to rest or move in a liquid, the air, etc.: a balloon floating on high.

to move lightly and gracefully: She floated down the stairs.

to move or hover before the eyes or in the mind: Romantic visions floated before his eyes.

to pass from one person to another: A nasty rumor about his firm is floating around town.

to be free from attachment or involvement.

to move or drift about: to float from place to place.

to vacillate (often followed by between).

to be launched, as a company, scheme, etc.

(of a currency) to be allowed to fluctuate freely in the foreign-exchange market instead of being exchanged at a fixed rate.

(of an interest rate) to change periodically according to money-market conditions.

Commerce. to be in circulation, as an acceptance; be awaiting maturity.

verb (used with object)

to cause to float.

to cover with water or other liquid; flood; irrigate.

to launch (a company, scheme, etc.); set going.

to issue on the stock market in order to raise money, as stocks or bonds.

to let (a currency or interest rate) fluctuate in the foreign-exchange or money market.

to make smooth with a float, as the surface of plaster.

Theater. to lay down (a flat), usually by bracing the bottom edge of the frame with the foot and allowing the rest to fall slowly to the floor.

noun

something that floats, as a raft.

something for buoying up.

an inflated bag to sustain a person in water; life preserver.

(in certain types of tanks, cisterns, etc.) a device, as a hollow ball, that through its buoyancy automatically regulates the level, supply, or outlet of a liquid.

Nautical. a floating platform attached to a wharf, bank, or the like, and used as a landing.

Aeronautics. a hollow, boatlike structure under the wing or fuselage of a seaplane or flying boat, keeping it afloat in water.

Angling. a piece of cork or other material for supporting a baited line in the water and indicating by its movements when a fish bites.

Zoology. an inflated organ that supports an animal in the water.

a vehicle bearing a display, usually an elaborate tableau, in a parade or procession: Each class prepared a float for the football pageant.

a glass of fruit juice or soft drink with one or more scoops of ice cream floating in it: a root-beer float.

(especially in the northeastern U.S.) a milk shake with one or more scoops of ice cream floating in it.

paddle¹(def 6).

Banking. uncollected checks and commercial paper in process of transfer from bank to bank.

the total amount of any cost-of-living or other variable adjustments added to an employee's pay or a retiree's benefits: a float of $6 per month on top of Social Security benefits.

an act or instance of floating, as a currency on the foreign-exchange market.

Building Trades.

a flat tool for spreading and smoothing plaster or stucco.
a tool for polishing marble.

a single-cut file of moderate smoothness.

a loose-fitting, sometimes very full dress without a waistline.

(in weaving and knitting) a length of yarn that extends over several rows or stitches without being interworked.

British. a sum of money used by a storekeeper to provide change for the till at the start of a day's business.

British. a small vehicle, usually battery powered, used to make deliveries, as of milk.

a low-bodied dray for transporting heavy goods.

Geology, Mining.

loose fragments of rock, ore, etc., that have been moved from one place to another by the action of wind, water, etc.
ore that has been washed downhill from an orebody and is found lying on the surface of the ground.
any mineral in suspension in water.

Usually floats. British Theater. footlight(def 1).

Origin of float

before 1000; Middle English floten, Old English flotian; cognate with Old Norse flota, Middle Dutch vloten; akin to Old English flēotan to fleet²

SYNONYMS FOR float

3 hover, waft, drift, suspend.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR float ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM float

out·float, verb (used with object) re·float, verb

Example sentences from the Web for floating

The last time there was a raid of this scale was in 2001, when 52 men were arrested on Queen Boat, a floating disco on the Nile.

Sisi Is Persecuting, Prosecuting, and Publicly Shaming Egypt’s Gays |Bel Trew |December 30, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The fore and aft have beautiful decks carved into them, and windows from various rooms too: it looks like a floating Apple device.

The World's Most Beautiful Boat—Yours for Half a Billion Dollars |Tim Teeman |October 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The boat—this floating church of Morrissey, this Lusitanian of sadness—is sold out.

This Charming Man: Meet 'Ronnissey,' Brooklyn's Fake Morrissey |Michael Moynihan |September 10, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Within three days floating wreckage is spotted, and within two weeks 640 pieces of debris and 50 bodies are recovered.

MH370 Debris Is Lost Forever, Can the Plane Be Found Without It? |Clive Irving |September 7, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

Floating in the fog of privilege, all sorts of voguish developments in language control bypassed me.

Warning: This Column Will Offend You |Michael Moynihan |April 28, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
At length we returned to our vessel, which had triumphantly fought the wind and floating trees.

Strange True Stories of Louisiana |George Washington Cable
He did not strike out immediately for the boat, but directed his course towards the floating oar.

The Associate Hermits |Frank R. Stockton
We rounded the terrible headland, and were floating at ease that evening on the glassy surface of Loch Erribol.

Memoirs of Life and Literature |W. H. Mallock
Many bodies were floating in the Danube and the Save; we heard that two of our Marines were killed and several wounded.

My Diary in Serbia: April 1, 1915-Nov. 1, 1915 |Monica M. Stanley
Papa's company is paid by all the others to do the floating down stream and the sorting out.

The Adventures of Bobby Orde |Stewart Edward White

British Dictionary definitions for floating (1 of 2)

floating

/ (ˈfləʊtɪŋ) /

adjective

having little or no attachment

(of an organ or part) displaced from the normal position or abnormally movable a floating kidney

not definitely attached to one place or policy; uncommitted or unfixed the floating vote

finance

(of capital) not allocated or invested; available for current use
(of debt) short-term and unfunded, usually raised by a government or company to meet current expenses
(of a currency) free to fluctuate against other currencies in accordance with market forces

machinery operating smoothly through being free from external constraints

(of an electronic circuit or device) not connected to a source of voltage

Derived forms of floating

floatingly, adverb

British Dictionary definitions for floating (2 of 2)

float

/ (fləʊt) /

verb

to rest or cause to rest on the surface of a fluid or in a fluid or space without sinking; be buoyant or cause to exhibit buoyancy oil floats on water; to float a ship

to move or cause to move buoyantly, lightly, or freely across a surface or through air, water, etc; drift fog floated across the road

to move about aimlessly, esp in the mind thoughts floated before him

to suspend or be suspended without falling; hang lights floated above them

(tr)

to launch or establish (a commercial enterprise, etc)
to offer for sale (stock or bond issues, etc) on the stock market

(tr) finance to allow (a currency) to fluctuate against other currencies in accordance with market forces

(tr) to flood, inundate, or irrigate (land), either artificially or naturally

(tr) to spread, smooth, or level (a surface of plaster, rendering, etc)

noun

something that floats

angling an indicator attached to a baited line that sits on the water and moves when a fish bites

a small hand tool with a rectangular blade used for floating plaster, etc

mainly US any buoyant object, such as a platform or inflated tube, used offshore by swimmers or, when moored alongside a pier, as a dock by vessels

Also called: paddle a blade of a paddle wheel

British a buoyant garment or device to aid a person in staying afloat

a hollow watertight structure fitted to the underside of an aircraft to allow it to land on water

another name for air bladder (def. 2)

an exhibit carried in a parade, esp a religious parade

a motor vehicle used to carry a tableau or exhibit in a parade, esp a civic parade

a small delivery vehicle, esp one powered by batteries a milk float

Australian and NZ a vehicle for transporting horses

banking, mainly US the total value of uncollected cheques and other commercial papers

mainly US and Canadian a sum to be applied to minor expenses; petty cash

a sum of money used by shopkeepers to provide change at the start of the day's business, this sum being subtracted from the total at the end of the day when calculating the day's takings

the hollow floating ball of a ballcock

engineering a hollow cylindrical structure in a carburettor that actuates the fuel valve

mainly US and Canadian a carbonated soft drink with a scoop of ice cream in it

(in textiles) a single thread brought to or above the surface of a woven fabric, esp to form a pattern

forestry a measure of timber equal to eighteen loads

Derived forms of float

floatable, adjective floatability, noun

Word Origin for float

Old English flotian; related to Old Norse flota , Old Saxon flotōn; see fleet ²

Medical definitions for floating

floating

[ flō′tĭng ]

adj.

Completely or partially unattached.

Out of the normal position; unduly movable. Used of certain organs such as the kidney.

Scientific definitions for floating

float

[ flōt ]

An air-filled sac in certain aquatic organisms, such as kelp, that helps maintain buoyancy. Also called air bladder air vesicle

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

floating

adjective

Origin of floating

OTHER WORDS FROM floating

Words nearby floating

Definition for floating (2 of 2)

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

noun

Origin of float

SYNONYMS FOR float

OTHER WORDS FROM float

Example sentences from the Web for floating

British Dictionary definitions for floating (1 of 2)

adjective

Derived forms of floating

British Dictionary definitions for floating (2 of 2)

verb

noun

Derived forms of float

Word Origin for float

Medical definitions for floating

adj.

Scientific definitions for floating

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

floating

adjective

Origin of floating

OTHER WORDS FROM floating

Words nearby floating

Definition for floating (2 of 2)

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

noun

Origin of float

SYNONYMS FOR float

OTHER WORDS FROM float

Words related to floating

Example sentences from the Web for floating

British Dictionary definitions for floating (1 of 2)

adjective

Derived forms of floating

British Dictionary definitions for floating (2 of 2)

verb

noun

Derived forms of float

Word Origin for float

Medical definitions for floating

adj.

Scientific definitions for floating