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
Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
Walking among this throng of floating color balls is surreal and well worth the drive.
—Shauna Farnell, Denver Post, 25 May 2026
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 elaborate staging kept with the song’s energy, with the group bursting out of a giant pink teddy bear outfitted with speakers for paws, interrupting a tea party scene populated by extras with pinkies raised, before launching into the track amid a cascade of colour and floating stuffed animals.
—Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
Walking among this throng of floating color balls is surreal and well worth the drive.
—Shauna Farnell, Denver Post, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for floating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for floating
Adjective
-
Like many restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic, Verdes El Ranchero depended on the neighborhood to keep it afloat.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 May 2026
-
This poses a huge threat to communities around the nation and due to the gap in these critical roles, infrastructure and local businesses are struggling to stay afloat.—
Rose Van Alstine,
Fortune,
26 May 2026
Verb
-
Solo opened to $65 million internationally a global debut hovering in the $168 million range.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
26 May 2026
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The temperatures were quite cold, hovering around 18 degrees Celsius on-track and just over 13 degrees for the air temperature.—
Madeline Coleman,
New York Times,
24 May 2026
Verb
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Traveling even to a different Strip hotel could be bewildering, so tourists worn out by a day of wandering, people-watching and drinking didn’t seem to mind mediocre restaurants, content to stumble off to bed after a few turns at the tables.—
Winston Ross,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2026
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John Slattery in Vladimir, wandering around on the sidelines, knocking back cocktails and running out to the backyard every hour or so to make sure his lettuce has been adequately watered.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
Among the new lines sailing in Alaska are MSC, The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection and Virgin Voyages.—
Josh Rivera,
USA Today,
29 May 2026
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The Michigan couple, both US nationals, had been sailing together for more than a decade, documenting their life at sea on social media.—
Elizabeth Wolfe,
CNN Money,
27 May 2026
Verb
-
Free-roaming felines kill 2 billion birds a year in America.—
Bruce M. Beehler,
Washington Post,
26 May 2026
-
Russian universities, previously thought of as off-limits, are now seeing more military recruiters roaming the halls.—
Daniel DePetris,
Mercury News,
23 May 2026
Verb
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As for the fish, which was reportedly found swimming in a plastic container in Irizarry’s backpack, it was taken to the Flagler County Humane Society.—
Sean Joseph OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
31 May 2026
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Born April 20, 1959, in Sittard, Netherlands, Hof has set multiple Guinness World Records for cold endurance including running a barefoot half-marathon above the Arctic Circle, climbing to 7,400 meters on Mount Everest in shorts and swimming under ice.—
Allison Palmer,
Miami Herald,
28 May 2026
Verb
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Although Nilsson would likely disagree, her work affirms that all of us are drifting toward oblivion, with the best days of our lives like so much confetti in the wind.—
Jeremy Lybarger,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
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The placement of the bite suggests the whale was likely scavenged after death, its body drifting belly-up through ancient seas.—
Melissa Cristina Márquez,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
Verb
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Sighting Shebara The speedboat and its four passengers—the captain, the skipper, my aforementioned scuba instructor and I—are cruising along the water when a mirage seems to appear in the distance, strung out like giant pearls floating on top of the sea.—
Lauren Keith,
Robb Report,
30 May 2026
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That deployment model remains relatively unusual within expedition cruising, where many vessels stay tied to a single geography.—
Rachel Ingram,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Floating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/floating. Accessed 3 Jun. 2026.
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