Flotation: meaning, definitions and examples

Used when referring to the act or process of staying afloat on a liquid, generally water, or the process of launching a company on the stock market.

• The flotation of the new company on the stock exchanges was successful.
• The life jacket improves the swimmer's flotation in water.

Refers to the property or tendency of an object to float on a liquid or rise in a fluid, also can describe a state of being optimistic or cheerful.

• The buoyancy of the rubber duck allows it to float on water.
• Despite the difficulties, she maintained a sense of buoyancy and hope.

Describes the act of rising or causing something to rise into the air and float, typically by means that seem magical or beyond normal physical laws.

• The magician amazed everyone with a trick involving human levitation.
• In the story, the monk achieved levitation through intense meditation.

Used in British English to describe the process of a company selling its shares to the public for the first time.

• The company's flotation was highly successful, raising millions in capital.
• There is a lot of buzz around the upcoming flotation of several tech startups.