<B>float, </B>verb, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>v.i. </I> <B>1. </B>to stay on top of or be held up by air, water, or other liquid. A cork will float, but a stone sinks. <BR> <I>Ex. Ice floats on water.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to move with a moving liquid; drift. <BR> <I>Ex. The boat floated out to sea.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>to rest or move in a liquid or in the air or other gas. <BR> <I>Ex. Clouds floated in the sky.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>(Figurative.) to move or hover before the eyes or in the mind. <BR> <I>Ex. Faded ideas float in the fancy like half-forgotten dreams (Richard Brinsley Sheridan).</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>(Figurative.) to move aimlessly; pass from person to person. <BR> <I>Ex. The rumor floated through the town.</I> <DD><B> 6a. </B>(of a company) to be supported by the public; be launched. <DD><B> b. </B>(of an acceptance) to be in circulation. <DD><B> 7. </B>(of a currency) to rise and fall in value according to supply and demand instead of through government regulation. <BR> <I>Ex. Other countries, such as Switzerland and Japan, are allowing their currencies to float (Newsweek).</I> <DD><I>v.t. </I> <B>1. </B>to cause to float. <BR> <I>Ex. to float a ship.</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>to cover with liquid; flood. <DD><B> 3. </B>to set going (a company, scheme, or other venture); launch. <BR> <I>Ex. to float a loan.</I> <DD><B> 4. </B>to put on the market; sell (securities). <BR> <I>Ex. to float an issue of stock. To get money the government floated an issue of bonds.</I> <DD><B> 5. </B>to allow (a currency) to change in value according to supply and demand. <BR> <I>Ex. The Germans are angry with the French for floating the franc and thus trying to underprice German exports (Time).</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>to refine (pigments) by causing them to pass through a stream of water. <DD><B> 7. </B>to make smooth or level, as the surface of plaster. <DD><I>noun </I> <B>1. </B>anything that stays up or holds up something else in water. A raft or a life preserver is a float. <DD><B> 2. </B>a piece of wood, cork, or quills on a fish line that supports the line and bobs when a fish bites the hook; bobber. <DD><B> 3. </B>an air-filled organ that supports a fish or other aquatic animal or an aquatic plant. <DD><B> 4. </B>an air-filled, watertight part on an aircraft for landing or floating on water; pontoon. <DD><B> 5. </B>a hollow, metal ball that regulates the level, supply, or outlet of a liquid in a tank, boiler, or the like. <DD><B> 6. </B>a milkshake or ice-cream soda, with ice cream floating in it. <DD><B> 7. </B>a low, flat car that carries something to be shown in a parade. <DD><B> 8. </B>a flat board of a water wheel or paddle wheel. <DD><B> 9. </B>a tool for smoothing or leveling, such as a trowel for smoothing plaster. <DD><B> 10. </B>(Banking.) <DD><B> a. </B>checks that are in transit, as by mail, and have not yet been collected. <DD><B> b. </B>(U.S.) credit automatically extended by Federal Reserve banks to member banks covering checks delayed in collection. <DD><B> 11. </B>(Finance.) the floating of a currency on the monetary market. <BR> <I>Ex. It seems possible that a growing number of currencies will follow the Canadian example of a fairly relaxed float (National Review).</I> <DD><B> 12. </B>(British.) a sum of small change with which a shopkeeper, tradesman, peddler, or one who takes transportation fares, begins the day's work. <BR> <I>Ex. "What's that, then?" I asked, pointing at the drawer. "That's my float," she grunted. "I'm not parting with that" (Sunday Times).</I> <DD><B> 13a. </B>the passing of the weft over a part of the warp without being interwoven with it. <DD><B> b. </B>the loose mass of thread resulting from this action. <DD><B> 14. </B>(Archaic.) act of floating. <BR><I>expr. <B>floats,</B> </I>footlights in a theater. <BR> <I>Ex. The floats are operated from the main instrument panel offstage.</I> </DL>
<B>floatable, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>that can float or be floated. <DD><B> 2. </B>that can be floated on. <BR> <I>Ex. a floatable river.</I> </DL>
<B>floatboard, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>one of the boards of an undershot water wheel. <DD><B> 2. </B>one of the boards or paddles at the circumference of a paddle wheel. </DL>
<A NAME="floatchamber">
<B>float chamber,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the part of a carburetor which holds the fuel before it is vaporized and drawn into the cylinders. It contains one or more floats that regulate the inflow of fuel. </DL>
<A NAME="floatel">
<B>floatel, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an excursion boat with sleeping and eating accommodations. </DL>
<A NAME="floater">
<B>floater, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a person or thing that floats. <DD><B> 2. </B>(Informal.) a person who often changes his place of living or working. <BR> <I>Ex. A Cleveland restaurant chain operator bemoans the number of "floaters" who won't stick to a job (Wall Street Journal).</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Informal.) <B>=floating voter.</B> <DD><B> 4. </B>(U.S.) a person who votes illegally in several places. <DD><B> 5. </B>(Sports.) a ball thrown or hit so as to travel slowly and appear to hang in the air, usually on a slightly arched course. <BR> <I>Ex. The girl from Ohio was playing a shrewdly calculated match, keeping the ball deep down the middle with high floaters (New York Times).</I> <DD><B> 6. </B>an insurance policy covering a category of goods, such as household effects, whether at a fixed location or in transit. <BR> <I>Ex. The small percentage of homeowners who had all-risk personal-property floaters also can collect for damage to belongings (Time).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="floatfeed">
<B>float-feed, </B>noun, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><I>noun </I> a device, such as a carburetor, that regulates the flow of a liquid by means of a float. <DD><I>adj. </I> that regulates the flow of a liquid by means of a float. </DL>
<A NAME="floatglass">
<B>float glass,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a flat glass of very smooth, brilliant finish, produced by flowing molten glass upon a bed of molten metal under controlled temperatures. </DL>
<A NAME="floating">
<B>floating, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>that floats. <BR> <I>Ex. The floating ice shelf was found to abut the grounded ice inland (E. F. Roots).</I> <DD><B> 2. </B>not fixed; not staying in one place; moving around. <BR> <I>Ex. a floating poulation.</I> <DD><B> 3. </B>(Finance.) <DD><B> a. </B>in use or circulation; not permanently invested. <BR> <I>Ex. floating capital.</I> <DD><B> b. </B>not funded; changing. The floating debt of a business consists of notes, drafts, etc., payable within a short time. <DD><B> 4. </B>of or having to do with a machine part, such as a connecting rod or coupler, connected or hung so that it functions without causing vibration. <DD><B> 5. </B>(Medicine.) not in the normal position; displaced. <BR> <I>Ex. a floating kidney.</I> adv. <B>floatingly.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="floatingbridge">
<B>floating bridge,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a bridge supported by boats, rafts, or pontoons. <DD><B> 2. </B>the part of certain swing bridges, supported by a caisson or pontoon, which can swing away. <DD><B> 3. </B>a kind of double bridge whose upper member projects beyond the lower and can be moved forward by ropes, formerly used for carrying troops over narrow moats. </DL>
<B>floating dock</B> or <B>dry dock,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a type of movable dry dock that is raised above the water after a ship has entered, and lowered after repairs are completed. </DL>
<A NAME="floatinggarden">
<B>floating garden,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an artificially made island that floats on the surface of a lake and consists of a long strip of woven rushes covered with mud and weeds upon which vegetables and flowers are grown. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingheart">
<B>floating heart,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> an aquatic plant of the gentian family that has floating, heart-shaped leaves. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingisland">
<B>floating island,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a floating mass of earth held together especially by driftwood or roots. <DD><B> 2. </B>a dessert made of boiled custard with meringue or whipped cream on it. </DL>
<A NAME="floatinglight">
<B>floating light,</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B><B>=lightship.</B> <DD><B> 2. </B>a lifebuoy with a lantern, for use in rescue work at night. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingpoint">
<B>floating-point, </B>adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or designating a computation in a digital computer in which the location of the decimal point or the binary point may vary from number to number. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingribs">
<B>floating ribs,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> ribs not attached to the breastbone; the last two pairs of ribs. See also <B>false ribs.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="floatingstock">
<B>floating stock,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> stock available for speculation rather than for investment, and thus not held permanently. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingsupply">
<B>floating supply,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the quantity of goods or securities immediately available in a market. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingvote">
<B>floating vote,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> the group of voters without known party affiliation or preference. </DL>
<A NAME="floatingvoter">
<B>floating voter,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a voter who is not committed to any political party, candidate, or issue; an undecided voter; floater. <BR> <I>Ex. What [the Prime Minister] is after is the floating voter ... to win the floater's respect by getting tough with the unions, and by securing a balance of payments surplus (Punch).</I> </DL>
<A NAME="floatplane">
<B>floatplane, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an airplane with floats in place of wheels. </DL>
<A NAME="floatprocess">
<B>float process,</B><DL COMPACT><DD> a process for making float glass. </DL>
<A NAME="floats">
<B>floats, </B>noun pl.<DL COMPACT><DD> See under <B>float.</B> </DL>
<A NAME="floatstone">
<B>floatstone, </B>noun.<DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>a stone used by bricklayers for smoothing the surfaces of bricks used in curved work. <DD><B> 2. </B>a whitish-gray, spongy variety of opal, so light as to float upon water. </DL>
<A NAME="floaty">
<B>floaty, </B>adjective, <B>floatier,</B> <B>floatiest.</B><DL COMPACT><DD><B> 1. </B>that can float; buoyant. <DD><B> 2. </B>(of a ship) needing very little water to float. </DL>
