What does "floating" mean?

1. (buoyant) staying on the surface of a liquid or in the air. 2. (not fixed) not fixed in one position or not belonging to a specific group. 3. (plastering) the act of smoothing out plaster on a wall. 4. (horse dentistry) filing down the sharp edges of a horse's teeth. 5. (linguistics) a sound or tone that is not attached to a specific part of a word.

floating

adj. · n.

US //ˈfɫoʊtɪŋ// UK //flˈəʊtɪŋ// float·ing

1 buoyant (adj.)
B1 Intermediate

staying on the surface of a liquid or in the air.

buoyant; remaining on the surface of a liquid or suspended in a fluid medium.

Example

The children watched the floating leaves move slowly down the river.

Example

The floating debris from the shipwreck posed a significant hazard to smaller vessels navigating the coastal waters after the storm.
- buoyant
- drifting
- sinking
2 not fixed (adj.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

not fixed in one position or not belonging to a specific group.

not fixed in a permanent position; shifting or unattached to a specific entity.

Example

Floating voters often wait until the last week to decide which candidate to support.

Example

The company maintains a floating population of freelance consultants to handle seasonal spikes in project demands.
- variable
- shifting
- unattached
- fixed
- stable

Show 3 more sensesShow fewer

3 plastering (n.)
C1 Advanced Technical

the act of smoothing out plaster on a wall.

the process of smoothing or spreading plaster or cement on a surface using a flat tool.

Example

The builder finished the floating of the kitchen walls yesterday.

Example

Proper floating is essential to ensure the final coat of plaster adheres evenly to the masonry substrate.
- smoothing
- levelling
4 horse dentistry (n.)
C2 Proficiency Technical Medicine

filing down the sharp edges of a horse's teeth.

a veterinary dental procedure involving the filing of the sharp enamel points on the teeth of horses.

Example

The vet recommended floating the horse's teeth to help it eat more comfortably.

Example

Regular floating is a critical component of equine dental maintenance, preventing oral ulcerations caused by sharp enamel overgrowths.
- filing
- rasping
5 linguistics (adj.)
C2 Proficiency Academic Technical Science

a sound or tone that is not attached to a specific part of a word.

describes a phonological feature, such as a tone, that is not underlyingly attached to a specific segment.

Example

In some languages, a floating tone can change the meaning of a whole sentence.

Example

The analysis suggests that the floating high tone associates with the final syllable of the verb stem only under specific syntactic conditions.
- unattached
- anchored
- linked

Origin

By surface analysis, float + -ing.