1
a
: one that floats
b
: a person who floats something
2
: a person who votes illegally in various polling places
3
a
: a person without a permanent residence or regular employment
b
: a worker who moves from job to job
especially
: one without fixed duties
4
: a pitched, thrown, or hit ball that moves through the air relatively slowly with little or no spin or rotation
5
: a policy insuring specific items of personal property (such as jewelry or art)
6
: a bit of optical debris (such as a dead cell or cell fragment) in the vitreous humor or lens that may be perceived as a spot before the eye
also
: a spot in the visual field due to such debris
—usually used in plural
7
US
: floating holiday
Examples of floater in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
This waterfront restaurant and bar serves a refreshing frozen Rum Runner with punchy banana and blackberry notes, and the Bacardi Black floater on top gives it an extra potent kick.
—
Taylor Tobin, Southern Living, 9 July 2025
Higher water levels and quick currents persisted for the first eight or nine days, and floaters saw some dangerous conditions last weekend and early this week.
—Darin Oswald, Idaho Statesman, 4 July 2025
Guard Kaitlyn Chen opened the second period with an and-1 floater that drew loud cheers from the crowd.
—Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 23 June 2025
However, his defense, ball security and floater game low-key add quite a bit of value to offset his lack of dynamic shot creation.
—John Hollinger, New York Times, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for floater
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Taylor Tobin, Southern Living, 9 July 2025
Higher water levels and quick currents persisted for the first eight or nine days, and floaters saw some dangerous conditions last weekend and early this week.
—Darin Oswald, Idaho Statesman, 4 July 2025
Guard Kaitlyn Chen opened the second period with an and-1 floater that drew loud cheers from the crowd.
—Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 23 June 2025
However, his defense, ball security and floater game low-key add quite a bit of value to offset his lack of dynamic shot creation.
—John Hollinger, New York Times, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for floater
Cite this Entry
“Floater.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/floater. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
floater
noun
float·er
ˈflōt-ər 
: a bit of optical debris (as a dead cell or cell fragment) in the vitreous body or lens that may be perceived as a spot before the eye
also
: a spot in the visual field due to such debris
—usually used in plural
compare muscae volitantes
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share