floating island

American  

noun

1. a dessert consisting of boiled custard with portions of meringue, whipped cream, or whipped egg whites and sometimes jelly floating upon it or around it.

2. a floating mass of earth and partly decayed vegetation held together by interlacing roots, as on a lake: usually formed by the accumulation of plant litter; sometimes artificially built on wooden platforms, as in Asia.

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floating island British  

noun

1. a floating mass of soil held together by vegetation

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Etymology

Origin of floating island

First recorded in 1630–40

Example Sentences

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Surge, the newsletter world’s floating island of garbage—but a floating island of garbage that fights for you.

From Slate • Nov. 2, 2024

“I don’t know if you know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now,” Hinchcliffe said.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 28, 2024

Flood protection embankments, houses, hospitals and mosques have been built on Bhasan Char, or floating island, in the Bay of Bengal, officials said.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 16, 2020

A company called Oceanix is building a prototype floating island as an experimental solution for crowded coastal cities threatened by climate change, the company told the United Nations habitat program Wednesday.

From Washington Post • Apr. 5, 2019

A green feather, like the one Harison had picked up on the floating island, for his mother.

From "The Reader" by Traci Chee