as in floating
riding upon the surface of a body of liquid
the boat can't stay afloat much longer
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in hereabouts
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of afloat
Jeff Kiesel, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
The paradox of partnership Relationships often function like one-way life rafts, keeping men afloat while leaving women depleted.
—Vanessa Bennett, SELF, 10 Sep. 2025
Record trade flows with China, now Russia's top gas buyer, have helped keep the Russian economy afloat, particularly as Chinese purchases replace the collapse of European demand since the full-scale invasion in 2022.
—Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Sep. 2025
The financially distressed 113-year-old organization recently voted to hike membership prices by 160% over the next few years to help keep the group afloat.
—Jordan Valinsky, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2025
All four people went into the water, but one person was able to swim to shore and call for help and two others managed to stay afloat, according to the outlets.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
As competitors have worked furiously to keep cable afloat as more consumers moved to streaming venues, Fox has narrowed much of its focus to live and event programming with a heavy emphasis on sports and news.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
If there is an atmosphere present, the signal looks noticeably different than that from a bare rock, such as Mercury, as the light passes through the atmosphere and is scattered by any gases afloat in the alien skies, a process called transmission spectroscopy.
—Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 8 Sep. 2025
David McClendon, a senior partner and consultant at January Advisors, said that medical debt cases are likely going up because hospital budgets are tightening, and because patients are no longer receiving pandemic stimulus payments that kept many of them afloat and out of debt in recent years.
—Molly Castle Work, Twin Cities, 8 Sep. 2025
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
As the study notes, these costs must either be passed onto consumers, or absorbed by companies, forcing some to shutter and others to shed staff to remain afloat.
—Tiger Joyce, Boston Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
Madharaasi saw a major dip in collections on its second day but managed to stay afloat and higher than other fresh Indian releases.
—Sweta Kaushal, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Now down three starters, the Royals will try to remain afloat in the American League Wild Card race.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 9 Sep. 2025
The 49ers’ defense kept them afloat for much of the contest, but the offense couldn’t find paydirt.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 7 Sep. 2025
On the streets of Caracas, word of the US strike is on everyone’s lips, but beyond being a popular talking point most people here are keeping calm and carrying on – while doing their best to stay afloat.
—Andrew Raine, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
In 2018, Chicago attorney Len Goodman and real estate developer Elzie Higginbottom bought the Reader from the Chicago Sun-Times for $1 and the assumption of debt, rescuing it from dissolution and pumping more than $1 million each into the paper to keep it afloat.
—Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Modifying shifts or operating hours can also help restaurants stay afloat with fewer employees while working to replace staff.
—Jeff Kiesel, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
The paradox of partnership Relationships often function like one-way life rafts, keeping men afloat while leaving women depleted.
—Vanessa Bennett, SELF, 10 Sep. 2025
Record trade flows with China, now Russia's top gas buyer, have helped keep the Russian economy afloat, particularly as Chinese purchases replace the collapse of European demand since the full-scale invasion in 2022.
—Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Sep. 2025
The financially distressed 113-year-old organization recently voted to hike membership prices by 160% over the next few years to help keep the group afloat.
—Jordan Valinsky, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2025
All four people went into the water, but one person was able to swim to shore and call for help and two others managed to stay afloat, according to the outlets.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
As competitors have worked furiously to keep cable afloat as more consumers moved to streaming venues, Fox has narrowed much of its focus to live and event programming with a heavy emphasis on sports and news.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
If there is an atmosphere present, the signal looks noticeably different than that from a bare rock, such as Mercury, as the light passes through the atmosphere and is scattered by any gases afloat in the alien skies, a process called transmission spectroscopy.
—Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 8 Sep. 2025
David McClendon, a senior partner and consultant at January Advisors, said that medical debt cases are likely going up because hospital budgets are tightening, and because patients are no longer receiving pandemic stimulus payments that kept many of them afloat and out of debt in recent years.
—Molly Castle Work, Twin Cities, 8 Sep. 2025
Adverb
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
As the study notes, these costs must either be passed onto consumers, or absorbed by companies, forcing some to shutter and others to shed staff to remain afloat.
—Tiger Joyce, Boston Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
Madharaasi saw a major dip in collections on its second day but managed to stay afloat and higher than other fresh Indian releases.
—Sweta Kaushal, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Now down three starters, the Royals will try to remain afloat in the American League Wild Card race.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 9 Sep. 2025
The 49ers’ defense kept them afloat for much of the contest, but the offense couldn’t find paydirt.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 7 Sep. 2025
On the streets of Caracas, word of the US strike is on everyone’s lips, but beyond being a popular talking point most people here are keeping calm and carrying on – while doing their best to stay afloat.
—Andrew Raine, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
In 2018, Chicago attorney Len Goodman and real estate developer Elzie Higginbottom bought the Reader from the Chicago Sun-Times for $1 and the assumption of debt, rescuing it from dissolution and pumping more than $1 million each into the paper to keep it afloat.
—Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for afloat
Adjective
-
Companies with a smaller market value generally tend to have more floating rate debt than larger businesses.—
Lisa Kailai Han,
CNBC,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Social media posts and years of reviewing cookie-cutter luxury hotels had conditioned me to equate floating breakfasts, monogrammed accessories, butler service, and aromatherapy menus as markers of a dreamy luxury vacation.—
Katherine Alex Beaven,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Oct. 2024
Adverb
-
This time the recipient is area rancher Benjamin Bonney (Dermot Mulroney), who along with his thuggish sons is suspected of murdering anyone hereabouts who won’t surrender their own land to him.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
10 Jan. 2025
-
Blame the damp and moderate climate hereabouts or the particular ardor of the northern red-legged frog, but our target species is ready to hop anytime between early November and the middle of March.—
Murr Brewster,
The Christian Science Monitor,
12 Mar. 2024
Adverb
-
The reversal marks just one example of how Trump is rewriting Republicans’ decades-old playbook on countering Beijing’s influence in the United States and abroad.—
Christian Datoc,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
-
YouTube can deliver a huge global audience, and clearly, the NFL simply isn't a major draw yet abroad — even for a game held in South America.—
Contessa Brewer,Alex Sherman,
CNBC,
11 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Make software building available to all people everywhere.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
In the mid-2010s, the girlboss was everywhere.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Afloat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/afloat. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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