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flote

afloat

noun FLOH-teh Rare
Travel & Places Transportation

Origin: From flotar ('to float'), from Old French floter, from a Germanic root.

Usage Note

Flote is almost always encountered in the fixed phrase a flote ('afloat, staying above water'). Mantenerse a flote means to stay solvent or to keep one's head above water, both literally and figuratively. As an independent noun it is rare; learners should treat it as part of the idiom a flote rather than as a free-standing word. Sacar a flote means to rescue or bail out (a business, project, or person).

Examples

"La empresa logró mantenerse a flote."

Natural Translation

The company managed to stay afloat.

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