refloat

American  

[ree-floht] / riˈfloʊt /

verb (used with object)

refloated, refloating

1. to put (a boat or a beached whale) back into the water.

2. to reintroduce or re-establish (an idea, project, business, etc.), often on a new or better footing.

3. to issue again.

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Other Word Forms

• reflotation noun

Example Sentences

The British Divers Marine Life Rescue, which specialises in the rescue and protection of marine wildlife, says extra volunteers are needed to assess, give first aid and refloat stranded animals.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

On the way back south, it spent four days unloading cargo from the Thamesborg, the vessel grounded in the Franklin Strait, to help refloat it before the onset of new ice.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025

By 3:30 p.m. local time, rescue teams decided to euthanize the surviving animals “on welfare grounds,” after it was determined that rough waves and shallow beach conditions made it unsafe to refloat them.

From New York Times • Jul. 17, 2023

Suez Canal tugboats are trying to refloat the vessel, named Xin Hai Tong 23, the company said.

From Reuters • May 25, 2023

And besides," thought Pencroft, "why should it be impossible to refloat the brig?

From The Mysterious Island by Verne, Jules