English → Latin
“float” in Latin
ratisraft; pontoon bridge; boat, ship, vesselinnōto swim in, float uponflūctuōto surge, swell, undulate; to fluctuate, vacillate; to be restless, figuratively tossed by emotional distressfluitōto float; to flow; to wave, undulate
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
float s.
navis caudicaria or codicaria (Sall., Fragm., p. 990, Cort.): ratis.
A float of wood, *lignorum per aquas decursus.
The float on a fishing-line, *cortex.
float v.
TRANS., To flood (fields, etc.), Vid:
To send timber down a river, *ligna flumine secundo demittere.
To float a ship, navem deducere (to launch): navem scopulo detrudere (a ship that has been aground).
INTR., innare or innatare alicui rei (to swim in anything): sustineri ab aliqua re (to be supported on the surface, not sink down; e.g., on the water, ab aqua): fluctuare or fluctuari (to float on the waves): fluitare (to float in the air). A floating island, natans insula: a floating bridge, *pons e ratibus factus. The floating of timber down the stream, *lignorum per aquas decursus. IMPROPR., To be contented to float with the stream, nunquam dirigere brachia contra torrentem (Juv.).
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for float?
- The usual Latin words for “float” are ratis, innō, flūctuō; also fluitō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.