as in afloat
riding upon the surface of a body of liquid
the wreckage remained floating for hours
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in hovering
to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air
a canoe floating down the river particles of dust floating in the air
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in wandering
to move about from place to place aimlessly
lost touch with a childhood friend who spent much of his adult life floating from place to place
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of floating
Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2023
This tablet also comes with a full-sized floating keyboard that resembles Apple’s iPad Air and Pro Magic Keyboard.
—Patrick Moorhead, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2023
Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 8 Sep. 2025
The park service reminded the public to wear a life jacket when swimming, floating, fishing or boating on the Delaware River.
—Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for floating
Adjective
The United States shot down three more floating objects in the following days, then announced that there was no sign that any of them were connected to China.
—Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2023
This tablet also comes with a full-sized floating keyboard that resembles Apple’s iPad Air and Pro Magic Keyboard.
—Patrick Moorhead, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2023
Verb
And companies with high floating rate debt should see their earnings estimates improve as the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates.
—Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 8 Sep. 2025
The park service reminded the public to wear a life jacket when swimming, floating, fishing or boating on the Delaware River.
—Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for floating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for floating
Adjective
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Similarly, Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf told CNBC Wednesday that his bank is seeing lower-income Americans struggling to stay afloat, despite larger companies seemingly doing well.—
Laya Neelakandan,
CNBC,
11 Sep. 2025
-
In the nightmare scenario for a couple that has just started dating, Cherry lies about being a confident swimmer and ends up struggling to keep herself afloat in the ocean, so Laura has to jump in and rescue her.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
No more hovering at the oven door.—
Matt Emma,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
-
One way or the other, the current mood doesn’t feel sustainable, and the Penguins can’t enter the season with this speculation hovering over their heads.—
Josh Yohe,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Caiman was found wandering as a stray and suffering from demodectic mange, a skin infection that left him hairless and pink.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
-
On the streamer’s biggest hit, Game Changer, a competition show in which the premise changes every episode, Wysocki has managed to nurture intense parasocial bonds with Dropout’s fans by showcasing his personality as a chillass wandering spirit.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In 2025, Thorne’s Netflix miniseries Adolescence became a global juggernaut, sailing to the top of streaming charts and sparking international conversation.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Sep. 2025
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Products sailing out of Busan can be moved via two active trans-Pacific services that stop at the Port of Los Angeles.—
Glenn Taylor,
Sourcing Journal,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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With loneliness on the rise, MindTravel’s roaming piano concerts hope to foster connection, calm, and contemplation.—
Anna Haines,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Notable scavenger hunt locations include visiting the Memorial Union pop-up in Little Madison and finding one of the Milwaukee Brewers mascots roaming throughout the market.—
Anna Kleiber,
jsonline.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Plymouth White Horse Beach and Long Beach were closed to swimming on Sunday, as the beaches had red flag warnings due to the white shark off Manomet Point.—
Rick Sobey,
Boston Herald,
16 Sep. 2025
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By now, your head might be swimming, and that’s understandable.—
Steve Vernon,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Any cell drifting in the skies is blasted with UV rays and desiccated.—
Katherine Bourzac,
Quanta Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
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Even an imperfect north star is better than drifting rudderless.—
Dr. Jonathan Reichental,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Norwegian Cruise Line’s newest ship, Norwegian Aqua, began cruising out of Florida’s Port Canaveral this April with a passenger capacity of 3,600.—
Maureen O'Hare,
CNN Money,
13 Sep. 2025
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As of now, the Fishermen are cruising with momentum.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Floating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/floating. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
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