afloat
Americanadverb
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floating or borne on the water; in a floating condition.
The ship was set afloat.
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on board a ship, boat, raft, etc.; at sea.
cargo afloat and ashore.
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covered with water; flooded; awash.
The main deck was afloat.
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moving without being guided or controlled; drifting.
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passing from place to place; in circulation.
A rumor is afloat.
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free of major trouble, especially financially solvent.
to keep a venture afloat.
adjective
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floating
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aboard ship; at sea
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covered with water; flooded
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aimlessly drifting
afloat in a sea of indecision
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in circulation; afoot
nasty rumours were afloat
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free of debt; solvent
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of afloat
before 1000; Middle English, Old English on flote. See a- 1, float
Explanation
If something's afloat, it's drifting on the water. When you sail toy boats, you set them afloat across a pond or lake. You can set something afloat, like an inner tube in a pool or a leaf on a stream, or you can struggle to stay afloat, as when the passengers of a capsized boat try to keep their heads above water. In either case, being afloat means floating on the surface. The Old English word is aflote, from a Germanic root word.
Vocabulary lists containing afloat
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Guards released photos that appeared to show a plume of black smoke rising from a container vessel that was still afloat but down by the stern.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
Portugal committed to a deep restructuring of the airline in 2021 in exchange for EU approval of 3.2 billion euros of public aid to keep it afloat.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Supporting all that consumption is an economy that may frustrate Americans but is nonetheless keeping spending habits afloat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
He said their parents had little money, and worked several jobs to keep the family afloat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
As I struggled to stay afloat, I looked around wildly for the children who I clearly saw fall into the water seconds before me.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
