free-floating
adjective
free-float·ing
ˈfrē-ˈflō-tiŋ 
1
a
: floating freely
free-floating vegetation
b
: lacking specific attachment, direction, or purpose
free-floating ideas
2
: felt as an emotion without apparent cause
free-floating anxiety
Examples of free-floating in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In this process, nuclei collect neutral, free-floating subatomic particles called neutrons.
—
Jenna Ahart, Quanta Magazine, 2 July 2025
But there’s also a sort of a free-floating anxiety about Agnes, along with a dash of insecurity.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 27 June 2025
It was illustrated with a cross-section of a gooey candy bar; a dollop of beige cream, spiralling up into a wavelike crest; and a few free-floating hazelnuts and leaves.
—Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 2 June 2025
But without the grounding ballast of a well-articulated sense of self, these jokes are free-floating concepts in search of the context that actually makes sitcom quips memorable.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for free-floating
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Jenna Ahart, Quanta Magazine, 2 July 2025
But there’s also a sort of a free-floating anxiety about Agnes, along with a dash of insecurity.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 27 June 2025
It was illustrated with a cross-section of a gooey candy bar; a dollop of beige cream, spiralling up into a wavelike crest; and a few free-floating hazelnuts and leaves.
—Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 2 June 2025
But without the grounding ballast of a well-articulated sense of self, these jokes are free-floating concepts in search of the context that actually makes sitcom quips memorable.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for free-floating
Cite this Entry
“Free-floating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/free-floating. Accessed 15 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
free-floating
adjective
free-float·ing
ˈfrē-ˈflōt-iŋ
: felt as an emotion without apparent cause
free-floating anxiety
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