adv. & a. [ Pref. a- + float. ] 1. Borne on the water; floating; on board ship. [ 1913 Webster ]

On such a full sea are we now afloat. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Moving; passing from place to place; in general circulation; as, a rumor is afloat. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Unfixed; moving without guide or control; adrift; as, our affairs are all afloat. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Covered with water bearing floating articles; flooded; as, the decks are afloat. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

adv. & a. [ Pref. a- + flow. ] Flowing. [ 1913 Webster ]

Their founts aflow with tears. R. Browning. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. the flow of air. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. [ L. anomalus irregular + flos, floris, flower. ] (Bot.) Having anomalous flowers. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Arch.) An ornament resembling a ball placed in a circular flower, the petals of which form a cup round it, -- usually inserted in a hollow molding. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To besprinkle or scatter over with, or as with, flowers. Hobbes. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Campanula; -- so named from its bell-shaped flowers. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. bellefleur, lit., beautiful flower. ] A kind of apple. The yellow bellflower is a large, yellow winter apple. [ Written also bellefleur. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. [ L. bis twice + flos, floris, flower. ] (Bot.) Bearing two flowers; two-flowered. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ From the color of the flower. ] (Bot.) A genus of bulbous plants, natives of Southern Africa, named Hæmanthus, of the Amaryllis family. The juice of Hæmanthus toxicarius is used by the Hottentots to poison their arrows. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. a small float usually made of cork; attached to a fishing line.
Syn. -- bob, bobber, cork. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. any of various plants of the genus Ranunculus.
Syn. -- buttercup, crowfoot, goldcup, kingcup. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

{ } a. [ L. calyx, -ycis, calyx + flos, floris, flower. ] (Bot.) Having the petals and stamens adnate to the calyx; -- applied to a subclass of dicotyledonous plants in the system of the French botanist Candolle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. a candy made by spinning sugar that has been boiled to a high temperature; -- called commonly cotton candy.
Syn. -- spun sugar. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ F. choufleur, modified by E. Cole. L. caulis, and by E. flower; F. chou cabbage is fr. L. caulis stalk, cabbage, and fleur flower is fr. L. flos flower. See Cole, and Flower. ] 1. (Bot.) An annual variety of Brassica oleracea, or cabbage, of which the cluster of young flower stalks and buds is eaten as a vegetable. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The edible head or “curd” of a cauliflower plant. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. an erect or decumbent Old World perennial (Malva sylvestris) with axillary clusters of rosy-purple flowers; introduced into the U. S.
Syn. -- tall mallow, high mallow, cheese, Malva sylvestris. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. an erect perennial of eastern and southern U. S. (Asclepias tuberosa) having showy orange flowers.
Syn. -- butterfly weed, orange milkweed, pleurisy root, tuber root, Indian paintbrush, Asclepias tuberosa. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. See Cauliflower. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. Any plant of the genus Rudbeckia; -- so called from the cone-shaped disk of the flower head. They are cultivated for their large usually yellow daisies with prominent central cones. Also, any plant of the related genera Ratibida and Brauneria, the latter usually known as purple coneflower. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

2. any of various perennials of eastern US having thick rough leaves and long-stalked showy flowers with drooping rays and a conelike center. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. A thrashing floor. Hos. ix. 1. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. a flour or starch prepared from the grains of corn; it is used in cooking as a thickener.
Syn. -- cornstarch. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. (Bot.) A conspicuous wild flower (Centaurea Cyanus), growing in grainfields. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. [ Corolla + L. flos, floris, flower. ] (Bot.) Having the stamens borne on the petals, and the latter free from the calyx. Compare Calycifloral and Thalamifloral. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Counterfleury. ] (Her.) Adorned with flowers (usually fleurs-de-lis) so divided that the tops appear on one side and the bottoms on the others; -- said of any ordinary. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ Scot. craig a rock. See 1st Crag. ] (Zool.) The pole flounder. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To flow across, or in a contrary direction. “His crossflowing course.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) A kind of campion; according to Gerarde, the Lychnis Flos-cuculi. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) A species of Cardamine (Cardamine pratensis), or lady's smock. Its leaves are used in salads. Also, the ragged robin (Lychnis Flos-cuculi). [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Bot.) A genus consisting mostly of tropical perennial herbs (Commelina), having ephemeral flowers. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ LL. defloratus, p. p. of deflorare. See Deflour. ] (Bot.) Past the flowering state; having shed its pollen. Gray. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ LL. defloratio: cf. F. défloration. ] 1. The act of deflouring; as, the defloration of a virgin. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. That which is chosen as the flower or choicest part; careful culling or selection. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

The laws of Normandy are, in a great measure, the defloration of the English laws. Sir M. Hale. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Pref. de- + flower. ] Same as Deflower. [ archaic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

He died innocent and before the sweetness of his soul was defloured and ravished from him. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. See Deflowerer. [ archaic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ Pref. de- + flow: cf. L. defluere. ] To flow down. [ Obs. ] Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Previously also spelled deflour. ] [ imp. & p. p. Deflowered p. pr. & vb. n. Deflowering. ] [ F. déflorer, LL. deflorare; L. de- + flos, floris, flower. See Flower, and cf. Deflorate. ] 1. To deprive of flowers. [ 1913 Webster ]

An earthquake . . . deflowering the gardens. W. Montagu. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To take away the prime beauty and grace of; to rob of the choicest ornament. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To deprive of virginity, as a woman; to violate; to ravish; also, to seduce. [ 1913 Webster ]

If a man had deflowered a virgin. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who deflowers; a ravisher. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. [ See Disk, and Floral. ] (Bot.) Bearing the stamens on a discoid outgrowth of the receptacle; -- said of a subclass of plants. Cf. Calycifloral. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Effloresced p. pr. & vb. n. Efflorescing ] [ L. efflorescere to bloom, blossom; ex + florescere to begin to blossom, incho., fr. florere to blossom, fr. flos a flower. See Flower. ] 1. To blossom forth. Carlyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Chem.) To change on the surface, or throughout, to a whitish, mealy, or crystalline powder, from a gradual decomposition, esp. from the loss of water, on simple exposure to the air; as, Glauber's salts, and many others, effloresce. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To become covered with a whitish crust or light crystallization, from a slow chemical change between some of the ingredients of the matter covered and an acid proceeding commonly from an external source; as, the walls of limestone caverns sometimes effloresce with nitrate of calcium in consequence of the action of nitric acid formed in the atmosphere. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. efflorescence. ] 1. (Bot.) Flowering, or state of flowering; the blooming of flowers; blowth. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Med.) A redness of the skin; eruption, as in rash, measles, smallpox, scarlatina, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Chem.) (a) The formation of the whitish powder or crust on the surface of efflorescing bodies, as salts, etc. (b) The powder or crust thus formed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state or quality of being efflorescent; efflorescence. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ F. efflorescent, L. efflorescens, -entis, blooming, p. pr. of efflorescere. See Effloresce, v. i. ] 1. That effloresces, or is liable to effloresce on exposure; as, an efflorescent salt. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Covered with an efflorescence. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Cf. F. effleurer. ] (Leather Making) To remove the epidermis of (a skin) with a concave knife, blunt in its middle part, -- as in making chamois leather. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Hair matted, or twisted into a knot, as if by elves. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Enflowered p. pr. & vb. n. Enflowering. ] To cover or deck with flowers. [ Poetic ] [ 1913 Webster ]

These odorous and enflowered fields. B. Jonson. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. a plant of the genus Kniphofia having long grasslike leaves and tall scapes of red or yellow drooping flowers.
Syn. -- kniphofia, tritoma. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. plant of the Southwestern U. S. with fleshy roots and erect stems with narrow succulent leaves and one reddish-orange flower in each upper leaf axil. Its fleshy roots were once cooked by Indians. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

. (Bot.) (a) The common mullein. (b) A Brazilian apocynaceous vine (Macrosiphonia longiflora) having woolly leaves. (c) An umbelliferous Australian flower (Actinotus helianthi), often erroneously thought to be composite. The involucre looks as if cut out of white flannel. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n.; pl. Flon [ AS. flā, flān. ] An arrow. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.[ OE. flote ship, boat, fleet, AS. flota ship, fr. fleótan to float; akin to D. vloot fleet, G. floss raft, Icel. floti float, raft, fleet, Sw. flotta. √ 84. See Fleet, v. i., and cf. Flotilla, Flotsam, Plover. ] 1. Anything which floats or rests on the surface of a fluid, as to sustain weight, or to indicate the height of the liquid surface, or mark the place of, something. Specifically: (a) A mass of timber or boards fastened together, and conveyed down a stream by the current; a raft. (b) The hollow, metallic ball of a self-acting faucet, which floats upon the water in a cistern or boiler. (c) The cork or quill used in angling, to support the bait line, and indicate the bite of a fish. (d) Anything used to buoy up whatever is liable to sink; an inflated bag or pillow used by persons learning to swim; a life preserver. (e) The hollow, metallic ball which floats on the fuel in the fuel tank of a vehicle to indicate the level of the fuel surface, and thus the amount of fuel remaining. (f) A hollow elongated tank mounted under the wing of a seaplane which causes the plane to float when resting on the surface of the water. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

This reform bill . . . had been used as a float by the conservative ministry. J. P. Peters. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A float board. See Float board (below). [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Tempering) A contrivance for affording a copious stream of water to the heated surface of an object of large bulk, as an anvil or die. Knight. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. The act of flowing; flux; flow. [ Obs. ] Bacon. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. A quantity of earth, eighteen feet square and one foot deep. [ Obs. ] Mortimer. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Plastering) The trowel or tool with which the floated coat of plastering is leveled and smoothed. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. A polishing block used in marble working; a runner. Knight. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. A single-cut file for smoothing; a tool used by shoemakers for rasping off pegs inside a shoe. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. A coal cart. [ Eng. ] Simmonds. [ 1913 Webster ]

10. The sea; a wave. See Flote, n. [ 1913 Webster ]

11. (Banking) The free use of money for a time between occurrence of a transaction (such as depositing a check or a purchase made using a credit card), and the time when funds are withdrawn to cover the transaction; also, the money made available between transactions in that manner. [ PJC ]

12. a vehicle on which an exhibit or display is mounted, driven or pulled as part of a parade. The float often is based on a large flat platform, and may contain a very elaborate structure with a tableau or people. [ PJC ]

Float board, one of the boards fixed radially to the rim of an undershot water wheel or of a steamer's paddle wheel; -- a vane. --
Float case (Naut.), a caisson used for lifting a ship. --
Float copper or
Float gold (Mining), fine particles of metallic copper or of gold suspended in water, and thus liable to be lost. --
Float ore, water-worn particles of ore; fragments of vein material found on the surface, away from the vein outcrop. Raymond. --
Float stone (Arch.), a siliceous stone used to rub stonework or brickwork to a smooth surface. --
Float valve, a valve or cock acted upon by a float. See Float, 1 (b). [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Floated; p. pr. & vb. n. Floating. ] [ OE. flotien, flotten, AS. flotian to float, swim, fr. fleótan. See Float, n. ] 1. To rest on the surface of any fluid; to swim; to be buoyed up. [ 1913 Webster ]

The ark no more now floats, but seems on ground. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Three blustering nights, borne by the southern blast,
I floated. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To move quietly or gently on the water, as a raft; to drift along; to move or glide without effort or impulse on the surface of a fluid, or through the air. [ 1913 Webster ]

They stretch their broad plumes and float upon the wind. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

There seems a floating whisper on the hills. Byron. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. 1. To cause to float; to cause to rest or move on the surface of a fluid; as, the tide floated the ship into the harbor. [ 1913 Webster ]

Had floated that bell on the Inchcape rock. Southey. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To flood; to overflow; to cover with water. [ 1913 Webster ]

Proud Pactolus floats the fruitful lands. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Plastering) To pass over and level the surface of with a float while the plastering is kept wet. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To support and sustain the credit of, as a commercial scheme or a joint-stock company, so as to enable it to go into, or continue in, operation. [ 1913 Webster ]