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
show current usage.
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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
IEEE Spectrum, 24 Sep. 2025
If your email, phone number or address is floating around the web, scammers can weaponize that too.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 23 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
The current generated by these positive ions is proportional to the number of atoms floating about in the vacuum, giving a pressure reading.
—IEEE Spectrum, 24 Sep. 2025
If your email, phone number or address is floating around the web, scammers can weaponize that too.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for floating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for floating
Adjective
-
Donations from colleagues and community members helped the family stay afloat.—
Sydney Barragan,
Oc Register,
27 Sep. 2025
-
Instead, group homes that used that model would be forced to apply to the Minnesota Department of Human Services for behavioral health funding to stay afloat, and abide by an entirely different set of regulations and expectations.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
There was no personality cult hovering over the anonymous articles of the Soviet Constitution and the Code of Criminal Procedure.—
Benjamin Nathans
September 24,
Literary Hub,
24 Sep. 2025
-
One of the helicopters was on the landing pad with its rotors running when a crew member on a second helicopter that was hovering nearby at a low altitude noticed the man approaching the aircraft that was on the ground, according to court documents.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Rodrigo wore a polka dot halter top and a bold red lip for the snap, which was followed by a shot of herself, or a pal, wandering down a path next to a lake.—
Kirsty Hatcher,
PEOPLE,
23 Sep. 2025
-
Spiders and cockroaches aren’t the only creepy crawly bugs wandering your house in the night.—
Katie Nixon,
Nashville Tennessean,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Emerald Cruises & Tours follows the seasons by sailing Europe’s rivers when blossoms and vineyards are at their peak, and heading south for Caribbean warmth in the winter.—
AFAR Media,
AFAR Media,
26 Sep. 2025
-
The first vessel is set to begin sailing in the spring of 2026.—
Nathan Diller,
USA Today,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Ron Perez, president and CEO of CGHS, told Newsweek that someone found Petal in an alleyway, roaming the streets of Hudson.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
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Homeowners in Godley's Star Ranch subdivision told NBC DFW that the animals, often seen roaming near new housing developments, appear malnourished and at risk of disease.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In one of the film’s tautest sequences, they’re caught swimming in a neighbor’s pool by a caretaker (Damien Bonnard), and Sana must decide whether to pay off the man to keep his silence.—
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Sep. 2025
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The lengthy pre-copulation stage involved all three sharks motionless on the seafloor for nearly an hour, after which the female started swimming with one male shark biting onto each of her pectoral fins.—
Jennifer Ouellette,
ArsTechnica,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
These rocky remnants from the early solar system have been drifting through space for billions of years, offering clues about the formation of planets and the chaotic history of our cosmic neighborhood.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
18 Sep. 2025
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The story of Gnosia takes place on a ship drifting through space.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Rent a bike from Tour de Coast e-Bikes and spend your day cruising around town on the Historic Pascagoula Bike Trail.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
27 Sep. 2025
-
Among the best ways to visit iconic places during peak times of year is through the seamlessness of cruising.—
AFAR Media,
AFAR Media,
26 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Floating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/floating. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.
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