| float | Origin: OE. Flote ship, boat, fleet, AS. Flota ship, fr. Fleotan to float; akin to D. Vloot fleet, G. Floss raft, Icel. Floti float, raft, fleet, Sw. Flotta. See Fleet, 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 surface, or mark the place of, something. Specifically: A mass of timber or boards fastened together, and conveyed down a stream by the current; a raft. The hollow, metallic ball of a self-acting faucet, which floats upon the water in a cistern or boiler. The cork or quill used in angling, to support the bait line, and indicate the bite of a fish. Anything used to buoy up whatever is liable to sink; an inflated bag or pillow used by persons learning to swim; a life preserver. "This reform bill . . . Had been used as a float by the conservative ministry." (J. P. Peters) 2. A float board. See Float board (below). 3. A contrivance for affording a copious stream of water to the heated surface of an object of large bulk, as an anvil or die. 4. The act of flowing; flux; flow. 5. A quantity of earth, eighteen feet square and one foot deep. 6. The trowel or tool with which the floated coat of plastering is leveled and smoothed. 7. A polishing block used in marble working; a runner. 8. A single-cut file for smoothing; a tool used by shoemakers for rasping off pegs inside a shoe. 9. A coal cart. 10. The sea; a wave. See Flote, 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, 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). 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. "Had floated that bell on the Inchcape rock." (Southey) 2. To flood; to overflow; to cover with water. "Proud Pactolus floats the fruitful lands." (Dryden) 3. To pass over and level the surface of with a float while the plastering is kept wet. 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. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| abnormal cleavage of cardiac valve | Congenital malformation of a valve leaflet with a defect extending from the free margin. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Amussat's valve | A series of crescentic folds of mucous membrane in the upper part of the cystic duct, arranged in a somewhat spiral manner. Synonym: plica spiralis ductus cystici, Amussat's valve, Heister's valve, spiral valve of cystic duct, valvula spiralis. (05 Mar 2000) |
| anterior cusp of atrioventricular valve | The anterior leaflet or valvule of either the tricuspid or mitral valves. Synonym: cuspis anterior valvae atrioventricularis dextrae/sinistrae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| anterior urethral valve | A crescentic horizontal fold in the proximal spongy urethra. (05 Mar 2000) |
| aortic valve | The heart valve that divides the left ventricle and the aorta. The aortic valve opens during left ventricular contraction and then closes to prohibit the backwash of oxygenated blood from the aorta into the ventricle. The aortic valve has 3 valve cusps. (27 Sep 1997) |
| aortic valve insufficiency | Backflow of blood from the aorta into the left ventricle, owing to imperfect functioning of the aortic semilunar valve. (12 Dec 1998) |
| aortic valve prolapse | The downward displacement of the cuspal material (misalignment of the cusps) below a line joining points of attachment of the aortic valve leaflets. The prolapsed cusp may occlude the ventricular septal defect during ventricular diastole. (12 Dec 1998) |
| aortic valve stenosis | Narrowing of the orifice of the aortic valve or of the supravalular or subvalvular regions. (12 Dec 1998) |
| artificial heart valve | <cardiology> A synthetic or porcine (pigskin) valve surgically placed into the heart to replace a defective or malfunctioning valve. The aortic and mitral valves are the most frequently replaced with artificial valves. (27 Sep 1997) |
| ball valve | Any of a variety of prosthetic cardiac valve's comprised of a ball within a retaining cage affixed to the orifice; when appropriately sized, used in aortic, mitral, or tricuspid position. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ball valve action | The intermittent blockage of a tube or outlet of a cavity by some object or material that permits passage in one direction but not in the other. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ball-valve thrombus | Ball thrombus intermittently occluding the mitral or tricuspid orifice. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Bauhin's valve | The bilabial prominence of the terminal ileum into the large intestine at the caecocolic junction as seen in cadavers; in the living individual it appears as a truncated cone with a star-shaped orifice. Synonym: valva ileocaecalis, Bauhin's valve, ileocaecal eminence, ileocolic valve, Tulp's valve, Tulpius' valve, valve of Varolius. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Beraud's valve | A small fold in the interior of the lacrimal sac at its junction with the lacrimal duct. Synonym: Krause's valve. (05 Mar 2000) |