buoyancy

American  

[boi-uhn-see, boo-yuhn-see] / ˈbɔɪ ən si, ˈbu jən si /

Also buoyance

noun

• buoyancies
  plural

1. the power to float or rise in a fluid; relative lightness.

2. the power of supporting a body so that it floats; upward pressure exerted by the fluid in which a body is immersed.

3. lightness or resilience of spirit.

   Student well-being and buoyancy are especially important because of the relatively high incidence of depression and suicide.

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buoyancy British  

/ ˈbɔɪənsɪ /

noun

1. the ability to float in a liquid or to rise in a fluid

2. the property of a fluid to exert an upward force (upthrust) on a body that is wholly or partly submerged in it

3. the ability to recover quickly after setbacks; resilience

4. cheerfulness

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buoyancy Scientific  

/ boi′ən-sē /

1. The upward force that a fluid exerts on an object that is less dense than itself. Buoyancy allows a boat to float on water and provides lift for balloons.

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buoyancy Cultural  

1. The force that causes objects to float. According to the principle of Archimedes, when a solid is placed in a fluid (a liquid or a gas), it is subject to an upward force equal in magnitude to the weight of the fluid it has displaced.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonbuoyancy
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• buoyancies
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of buoyancy

First recorded in 1705–15; buoy(ant) + -ancy

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Explanation

Buoyancy is a quality that makes things float in water. It's also a type of happiness: if you're full of buoyancy, your mood is light and happy. This is a word with two main meanings that fit together well: Both kinds of buoyancy have to do with floating and staying up. The physical kind refers to objects that float instead of sinking in water, like a life raft or a buoy. The other kind of buoyancy is a happy mood, a feeling that nothing can get you down. So whenever you run into the word buoyancy, just think "staying afloat."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

buoyancy buoyancies

“I want to keep working with interesting people,” he says with his trademark buoyancy.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

"We confirmed previous ideas that lithospheric buoyancy forces are driving the rift, but we're bringing new insight that anomalous deformation can happen in East Africa."

From Science Daily ● Sep. 1, 2026

The boat was also short of lifebelts and buoyancy apparatus was stowed away.

From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026

Last July, a North Korean civilian tied plastic foam to his body for buoyancy and swam down the Korean Peninsula’s west coast.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 24, 2026

The floor, consisting of narrow planks of treated wood, was flat and the vertical sides of the buoyancy tanks were at right angles to it.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

But beneath it all, there are two buoyancies.

From Time Magazine Archive

Abandoned ideals and buoyancies can be seen within.

From Time Magazine Archive

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Related Words

• elasticity
• resilience

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