{
    "term": "float",
    "partOfSpeech": "verb",
    "ox3000": true,
    "cefr": "b2",
    "verbForms": {
        "presentSimple": {
            "iYouWeThey": "float",
            "heSheIt": "floats"
        },
        "pastSimple": "floated",
        "pastParticiple": "floated",
        "ingForm": "floating"
    },
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "to move slowly on water or in the air",
            "sensetop": "+ adv./prep.",
            "labels": "(figurative)(figurative)",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "A group of swans floated by."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The smell of new bread floated up from the kitchen."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Beautiful music came floating out of the window."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The boats were floating gently down the river."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Add the gnocchi and cook until they float to the surface."
                },
                {
                    "text": "People seem to float in and out of my life."
                },
                {
                    "text": "A few small clouds floated across the sky."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Her voice seemed to float on the water as gently as a slight mist."
                },
                {
                    "text": "In the dream my feet leave the ground and I start to float upwards."
                },
                {
                    "text": "An idea suddenly floated into my mind."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Transport by water"],
            "collocations": {
                "adverb": ["gently", "slowly", "downstream"],
                "verb + float": ["seem to"],
                "preposition": ["across", "down", "in"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "to stay on or near the surface of a liquid and not sink",
            "sensetop": "float in somethingfloat on something",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Wood floats."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Much of the bay is covered by floating sea ice."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She relaxed, floating gently in the water.",
                    "contextForm": "float in something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "A plastic bag was floating on the water.",
                    "contextForm": "float on something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "We tried to make a raft but it wouldn't float."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Vast masses of frogspawn floated just beneath the surface."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Transport by water"],
            "collocations": {
                "adverb": ["gently", "slowly", "downstream"],
                "verb + float": ["seem to"],
                "preposition": ["across", "down", "in"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "to make something move on or near the surface of a liquid",
            "sensetop": "float somethingfloat something + adv./prep.",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "There wasn't enough water to float the ship.",
                    "contextForm": "float something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "They float the logs down the river to the towns.",
                    "contextForm": "float something + adv./prep."
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "adverb": ["gently", "slowly", "downstream"],
                "verb + float": ["seem to"],
                "preposition": ["across", "down", "in"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 4,
            "definition": "to walk or move in a smooth and easy way",
            "sensetop": "+ adv./prep.",
            "labels": "(literary)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "She floated down the steps to greet us."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The couple floated across the dance floor."
                }
            ],
            "synonyms": "glide"
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 5,
            "definition": "to suggest an idea or a plan for other people to consider",
            "sensetop": "float something",
            "cefr": "c2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "They **floated the idea** of increased taxes on alcohol."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Suggestions and advice"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 6,
            "definition": "to sell shares in a company or business to the public for the first time",
            "sensetop": "float something",
            "labels": "(business)",
            "cefr": "c2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The company was floated on the stock market last week."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Shares were floated at 585p."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Money"]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 7,
            "definition": "if a government floats its country’s money or allows it to float, it allows its value to change freely according to the value of the money of other countries",
            "sensetop": "float (something)",
            "labels": "(economics)",
            "cefr": "c2",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "The government decided to allow the peso to float freely."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Money"],
            "collocations": {
                "adverb": ["freely"],
                "verb + float": ["allow something to"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to be what somebody likes",
            "labels": "(informal)",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "You can listen to whatever kind of music floats your boat."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": null,
            "definition": "to feel very happy",
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "Most couples feel they are walking on air on their wedding day."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Feelings"]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/fləʊt/",
                "audio": "fl/float/float__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/fləʊts/",
                "audio": "fl/float/floats__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈfləʊtɪd/",
                "audio": "fl/float/floated__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈfləʊtɪŋ/",
                "audio": "fl/float/floating__gb_2.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/fləʊt/",
                "audio": "fl/float/float__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/fləʊts/",
                "audio": "fl/float/floats__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈfləʊtɪd/",
                "audio": "fl/float/floated__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈfləʊtɪŋ/",
                "audio": "fl/float/floating__us_2.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "Old English flotian (verb), of Germanic origin and related to fleet ‘move or pass quickly’, reinforced in Middle English by Old French floter, also from Germanic."
}