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floating

 - 10 dictionary results
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float⋅ing

  [floh-ting]
Use floating in a Sentence
–adjective
1. being buoyed up on water or other liquid.
2. having little or no attachment to a particular place; moving from one place to another: a floating work force.
3. Pathology. away from its proper position, esp. in a downward direction: a floating kidney.
4. not fixed or settled in a definite place or state: a floating population.
5. Finance.
a. in circulation or use, or not permanently invested, as capital.
b. composed of sums due within a short time: a floating debt.
6. Machinery.
a. having a soft suspension greatly reducing vibrations between the suspended part and its support.
b. working smoothly.
Origin:
1555–65; float + -ing 2

Related forms:
float⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
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float

  [floht]
–verb (used without object)
1. to rest or remain on the surface of a liquid; be buoyant: The hollow ball floated.
2. to move gently on the surface of a liquid; drift along: The canoe floated downstream.
3. to rest or move in a liquid, the air, etc.: a balloon floating on high.
4. to move lightly and gracefully: She floated down the stairs.
5. to move or hover before the eyes or in the mind: Romantic visions floated before his eyes.
6. to pass from one person to another: A nasty rumor about his firm is floating around town.
7. to be free from attachment or involvement.
8. to move or drift about: to float from place to place.
9. to vacillate (often fol. by between).
10. to be launched, as a company, scheme, etc.
11. (of a currency) to be allowed to fluctuate freely in the foreign-exchange market instead of being exchanged at a fixed rate.
12. (of an interest rate) to change periodically according to money-market conditions.
13. Commerce. to be in circulation, as an acceptance; be awaiting maturity.
–verb (used with object)
14. to cause to float.
15. to cover with water or other liquid; flood; irrigate.
16. to launch (a company, scheme, etc.); set going.
17. to issue on the stock market in order to raise money, as stocks or bonds.
18. to let (a currency or interest rate) fluctuate in the foreign-exchange or money market.
19. to make smooth with a float, as the surface of plaster.
20. 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
21. something that floats, as a raft.
22. something for buoying up.
23. an inflated bag to sustain a person in water; life preserver.
24. (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.
25. Nautical. a floating platform attached to a wharf, bank, or the like, and used as a landing.
26. Aeronautics. a hollow, boatlike structure under the wing or fuselage of a seaplane or flying boat, keeping it afloat in water.
27. 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.
28. Zoology. an inflated organ that supports an animal in the water.
29. a vehicle bearing a display, usually an elaborate tableau, in a parade or procession: Each class prepared a float for the football pageant.
30. a glass of fruit juice or soft drink with one or more scoops of ice cream floating in it: a root-beer float.
31. (esp. in the northeastern U.S.) a milk shake with one or more scoops of ice cream floating in it.
32. paddle 1 (def. 6).
33. Banking. uncollected checks and commercial paper in process of transfer from bank to bank.
34. 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.
35. an act or instance of floating, as a currency on the foreign-exchange market.
36. Building Trades.
a. a flat tool for spreading and smoothing plaster or stucco.
b. a tool for polishing marble.
37. a single-cut file of moderate smoothness.
38. a loose-fitting, sometimes very full dress without a waistline.
39. (in weaving and knitting) a length of yarn that extends over several rows or stitches without being interworked.
40. British. a sum of money used by a storekeeper to provide change for the till at the start of a day's business.
41. British. a small vehicle, usually battery powered, used to make deliveries, as of milk.
42. a low-bodied dray for transporting heavy goods.
43. Geology, Mining.
a. loose fragments of rock, ore, etc., that have been moved from one place to another by the action of wind, water, etc.
b. ore that has been washed downhill from an orebody and is found lying on the surface of the ground.
c. any mineral in suspension in water.
44. Usually, floats. British Theater. footlights.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME floten, OE flotian; c. ON flota, MD vloten; akin to OE flēotan to fleet 2

Synonyms:
3. hover, waft, drift, suspend.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To floating
float   (flōt)   
v.   float·ed, float·ing, floats

v.   intr.

    1. To remain suspended within or on the surface of a fluid without sinking.

    2. To be suspended in or move through space as if supported by a liquid.

  2. To move from place to place, especially at random.

  3. To move easily or lightly: "Miss Golightly . . . floated round in their arms light as a scarf" (Truman Capote).

  4. Economics To find a level in relationship to other currencies solely in response to the law of supply and demand: allowed the dollar to float.

v.   tr.

  1. To cause to remain suspended without sinking or falling.

    1. To put into the water; launch: float a ship; float a navy.

    2. To start or establish (a business enterprise, for example).

  3. To flood (land), as for irrigation.

  4. Economics To allow (the exchange value of a currency) to find freely its real level in relationship to other currencies.

  5. To offer for consideration; suggest: floated my idea to the committee.

  6. To release (a security) for sale.

  7. To arrange for (a loan).

  8. To make the surface of (plaster, for example) level or smooth.

  9. Computer Science To convert (data) from fixed-point notation to floating-point notation.

n.  

  1. Something that floats, as:

    1. A raft.

    2. A buoy.

    3. A life preserver.

    4. A buoyant object, such as a cork, used to hold a net or fishing line afloat.

    5. A landing platform attached to a wharf and floating on the water.

    6. A floating ball attached to a lever to regulate the water level in a tank.

  2. Biology An air-filled sac or structure that aids in the flotation of an aquatic organism. Also called air bladder, air vesicle.

  3. A decorated exhibit or scene mounted on a mobile platform and pulled or driven in a parade.

  4. A sum of money representing checks that are outstanding.

  5. A tool for smoothing the surface of plaster or cement.

  6. A soft drink with ice cream floating in it. See Regional Note at milk shake.


[Middle English floten, from Old English flotian; see pleu- in Indo-European roots.]
float'a·ble adj.
float·ing   (flō'tĭng)   
adj.  

  1. Buoyed on or suspended in or as if in a fluid.

  2. Not secured in place; unattached.

  3. Inclined to move or be moved about: a floating meeting; floating crap games.

  4. Economics

    1. Available for use; in circulation. Used of capital.

    2. Short-term and usually unfunded. Used of a debt.

  5. Designed or constructed to operate smoothly and without vibration.

  6. Of or relating to an organ of the body that is movable or out of normal position: a floating kidney.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

float 
O.E. flotian "to float" (class II strong verb; past tense fleat, pp. floten), from P.Gmc. *flutojanan (cf. O.N. flota, M.Du. vloten). The noun meaning "platform on wheels used for displays in parades, etc." is from 1888, probably from earlier sense of "flat-bottomed boat" (1557). Floater "dead body found in water" is 1890, U.S. slang.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Financial Dictionary

float

To permit a country's currency to change freely in value against foreign currencies.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: float
Function: intransitive verb
of a currency : to find a level in the international exchange market in response to the law of supply and demand and without any restrictive effect of artificial support or control transitive verb 1 : to place (an issue of securities) on the market
2 : to obtain money for the establishment or development of (an enterprise) by issuing and selling securities
3 : NEGOTIATE 1 <float a loan>

Main Entry: float·ing
Function: adjective
1 : not presently committed or invested <floating capital>
2 : short-term and usually not funded <floating debt>
3 : having no fixed value or rate <floating currencies> <floating interest rates>
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: float·ing
Pronunciation: 'flOt-i[ng]
Function: adjective
: located out of the normal position or abnormally movable floatingkidney>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

floating float·ing (flō'tĭng)
adj.

  1. Completely or partially unattached.

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

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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