Definitions
1.nounA buoyant device used to support something in water or another liquid."Attach the float and the weight to the fishing line, above the hook."
2.nounA mass of timber or boards fastened together, and conveyed down a stream by the current; a raft.
3.nounA float board.
4.nounA tool similar to a rasp, used in various trades.
5.nounA sort of trowel used for finishing concrete surfaces or smoothing plaster."When pouring a new driveway, you can use a two-by-four as a float."
6.nounAn elaborately decorated trailer or vehicle, intended for display in a parade or pageant."That float covered in roses is very pretty."
7.nounA small vehicle used for local deliveries, especially in the term milk float.
8.nounFunds committed to be paid but not yet paid."Our bank does a nightly sweep of accounts, to adjust the float so we stay within our reserves limit."
9.noun(and other Commonwealth countries?) An offering of shares in a company (or units in a trust) to members of the public, normally followed by a listing on a stock exchange.
10.nounThe total amount of checks/cheques or other drafts written against a bank account but not yet cleared and charged against the account."No sir, your current float is not taken into account, when assets are legally garnished."
11.nounPremiums taken in but not yet paid out."We make a lot of interest from our nightly float."
12.nounA floating-point number, especially one that has lower precision than a double."That routine should not have used an int; it should be a float."
13.nounA soft beverage with a scoop of ice-cream floating in it."It's true - I don't consider anything other than root-beer with vanilla ice-cream to be a "real" float."
14.nounA small sum of money put in a cashier's till at the start of business to enable change to be made.
15.nounA maneuver where a player calls on the flop or turn with a weak hand, with the intention of bluffing after a subsequent community card.
16.nounOne of the loose ends of yarn on an unfinished work.
17.nounA car carrier or car transporter truck or truck-and-trailer combination
18.nounA lowboy trailer
19.noun(tempering) A device sending a copious stream of water to the heated surface of a bulky object, such as an anvil or die.
20.nounThe act of flowing; flux; flow.
21.nounA quantity of earth, eighteen feet square and one foot deep.
22.nounA polishing block used in marble working; a runner.
23.nounA coal cart.
24.nounA breakdancing move in which the body is held parallel to the floor while balancing on one or both hands.
25.nounA visual style on a web page that causes the styled elements to float above or beside others.
26.verbOf an object or substance, to be supported by a liquid of greater density than the object so as that part of the object or substance remains above the surface."The boat floated on the water."
27.verbTo cause something to be suspended in a liquid of greater density."to float a boat"
28.verbTo be capable of floating."Oil floats on vinegar."
29.verbTo move in a particular direction with the liquid in which one is floating"I’d love to just float downstream."
30.verbTo drift or wander aimlessly."Images from my childhood floated through my mind."
31.verbTo drift gently through the air."The balloon floated off into the distance."
32.verbTo move in a fluid manner."The dancer floated gracefully around the stage."
33.verbTo circulate."There's a rumour floating around the office that Jan is pregnant."
34.verb(of an idea or scheme) To be viable."That’s a daft idea... it’ll never float."
35.verbTo propose (an idea) for consideration."I floated the idea of free ice-cream on Fridays, but no one was interested."
36.verbTo automatically adjust a parameter as related parameters change.
37.verb(of currencies) To have an exchange value determined by the markets as opposed to by rule."The yen floats against the dollar."
38.verbTo allow (the exchange value of a currency) to be determined by the markets."Increased pressure on Thailand’s currency, the baht, in 1997 led to a crisis that forced the government to float the currency."
39.verbTo extend a short-term loan to."Could you float me $50 until payday?"
40.verbTo issue or sell shares in a company (or units in a trust) to members of the public, followed by listing on a stock exchange."2007, Jonathan Reuvid, Floating Your Company: The Essential Guide to Going Public."
41.verbTo spread plaster over (a surface), using the tool called a float.
42.verbTo use a float (rasp-like tool) upon."It is time to float this horse's teeth."
43.verbTo transport by float (vehicular trailer).
44.verbTo perform a float.
45.verbTo cause (an element within a document) to float above or beside others.