floe

[ floh ]
/ floʊ /

noun

Also called ice floe. a sheet of floating ice, chiefly on the surface of the sea, smaller than an ice field.
a detached floating portion of such a sheet.

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decorum
the act of or need for making up one's mind.
dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
a company of singers, especially an organized group employed in church service.
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Origin of floe

1810–20; perhaps < Norwegian flo layer (compare Old Norse flō layer, level); cognate with Old English flōh piece, flagstone; cf. flaw1

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH floe

floe flow (see synonym study at flow)

Words nearby floe

flock paper, flockbed, flocking, flocky, flodden, floe, floeberg, flog, flokati, flong, flood
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to floes

iceberg, icecap, berg, chunk, glaze, hail, crystal, icicle, glacier, sleet, diamonds, hailstone, permafrost

Example sentences from the Web for floes

British Dictionary definitions for floes

floe
/ (fləʊ) /

noun

See ice floe

Word Origin for floe

C19: probably from Norwegian flo slab, layer, from Old Norse; see flaw 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for floes

floe
[ flō ]

A mass or sheet of floating ice.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.