float
verb /fləʊt/
/fləʊt/
Verb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they float | /fləʊt/ /fləʊt/ |
| he / she / it floats | /fləʊts/ /fləʊts/ |
| past simple floated | /ˈfləʊtɪd/ /ˈfləʊtɪd/ |
| past participle floated | /ˈfləʊtɪd/ /ˈfləʊtɪd/ |
| -ing form floating | /ˈfləʊtɪŋ/ /ˈfləʊtɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive] + adv./prep. to move slowly on water or in the air synonym drift
- A group of swans floated by.
- The smell of new bread floated up from the kitchen.
- Beautiful music came floating out of the window.
- The boats were floating gently down the river.
- Add the gnocchi and cook until they float to the surface.
- (figurative) People seem to float in and out of my life.
Extra ExamplesTopics Transport by waterb2- A few small clouds floated across the sky.
- Her voice seemed to float on the water as gently as a slight mist.
- In the dream my feet leave the ground and I start to float upwards.
- (figurative) An idea suddenly floated into my mind.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- gently
- slowly
- downstream
- …
- seem to
- across
- down
- in
- …
- [intransitive] to stay on or near the surface of a liquid and not sink
- Wood floats.
- Much of the bay is covered by floating sea ice.
- float in something She relaxed, floating gently in the water.
- float on something A plastic bag was floating on the water.
Extra ExamplesTopics Transport by waterb2- We tried to make a raft but it wouldn't float.
- Vast masses of frogspawn floated just beneath the surface.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- gently
- slowly
- downstream
- …
- seem to
- across
- down
- in
- …
- [transitive] to make something move on or near the surface of a liquid
- float something There wasn't enough water to float the ship.
- float something + adv./prep. They float the logs down the river to the towns.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- gently
- slowly
- downstream
- …
- seem to
- across
- down
- in
- …
- [intransitive] + adv./prep. (literary) to walk or move in a smooth and easy way synonym glide
- She floated down the steps to greet us.
- The couple floated across the dance floor.
- [transitive] float something to suggest an idea or a plan for other people to consider
- They floated the idea of increased taxes on alcohol.
- [transitive] float something (business) to sell shares in a company or business to the public for the first time
- The company was floated on the stock market in 2014.
- Shares were floated at 585p.
- [transitive, intransitive] float (something) (economics) if a government floats its country’s money or allows it to float, it allows its value to change freely according to the value of the money of other countries
- The government decided to allow the peso to float freely.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- freely
- allow something to
on water/in air
walk lightly
suggest idea
business/economics
Word OriginOld English flotian (verb), of Germanic origin and related to fleet ‘move or pass quickly’, reinforced in Middle English by Old French floter, also from Germanic.
Idioms
float somebody’s boat
- (informal) to be what somebody likes
- You can listen to whatever kind of music floats your boat.
float/walk on air
- to feel very happy
- Most couples feel they are walking on air on their wedding day.