floating

[ floh-ting ]

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 workforce.

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

   a floating kidney.

4. not fixed or settled in a definite place or state:

   a floating population.

5. Finance.
   1. in circulation or use, or not permanently invested, as capital.
   2. composed of sums due within a short time:

      a floating debt.

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

floating

/ ˈfləʊtɪŋ /

adjective

1. having little or no attachment
2. (of an organ or part) displaced from the normal position or abnormally movable

   a floating kidney

3. not definitely attached to one place or policy; uncommitted or unfixed

   the floating vote

4. finance
   1. (of capital) not allocated or invested; available for current use
   2. (of debt) short-term and unfunded, usually raised by a government or company to meet current expenses
   3. (of a currency) free to fluctuate against other currencies in accordance with market forces
5. machinery operating smoothly through being free from external constraints
6. (of an electronic circuit or device) not connected to a source of voltage

Derived Forms

• ˈfloatingly, adverb

Other Words From

• floating·ly adverb
• non·floating adjective
• non·floating·ly adverb
• un·floating adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of floating¹

First recorded in 1555–65; float + -ing ²

Example Sentences

Once a glacier backs off its moraine and becomes free floating, it can collapse catastrophically.

From Outside Online

He observes the bodies floating away on the river, pulling on his cigarette with a sneer.

From The Daily Beast

Search teams find dozens of people and jet debris floating in the Java Sea, as the airline confirms the wreckage is from QZ8501.

From The Daily Beast

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.

From The Daily Beast

Not exactly a happy quotation over a nature background like some of the images floating around in the blogosphere!

From The 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.

From The Daily Beast

After a bit of waiting, Mac decided that the smoke was floating from a certain direction, and we began to edge carefully that way.

From Project Gutenberg

The fire crackled around the Dutch ovens, and the odor of coffee came floating by.

From Project Gutenberg

It was like a dream of beauty suspended in the air before you—floating there—and you didn't want to disturb it.

From Project Gutenberg

She wore a gown of white tulle upon whose floating surface were a few dark-blue lilies.

From Project Gutenberg

The pole was, therefore, continually floating or rising and falling in steam of ever-varying pressure.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• soaring