noun
- that part of a room, hallway, or the like, that forms its lower enclosing surface and upon which one walks.
- a continuous, supporting surface extending horizontally throughout a building, having a number of rooms, apartments, or the like, and constituting one level or stage in the structure; story.
- a level, supporting surface in any structure: the elevator floor.
- one of two or more layers of material composing a floor: rough floor; finish floor.
- a platform or prepared level area for a particular use: a threshing floor.
- the bottom of any more or less hollow place: the floor of a tunnel.
- a more or less flat extent of surface: the floor of the ocean.
- the part of a legislative chamber, meeting room, etc., where the members sit, and from which they speak.
- the right of one member to speak from such a place in preference to other members: The senator from Alaska has the floor.
- the area of a floor, as in a factory or retail store, where items are actually made or sold, as opposed to offices, supply areas, etc.: There are only two salesclerks on the floor.
- the main part of a stock or commodity exchange or the like, as distinguished from the galleries, platform, etc.
- the bottom, base, or minimum charged, demanded, or paid: The government avoided establishing a price or wage floor.
- Mining. an underlying stratum, as of ore, usually flat.
- Nautical.
- the bottom of a hull.
- any of a number of deep, transverse framing members at the bottom of a steel or iron hull, generally interrupted by and joined to any vertical keel or keelsons.
- the lowermost member of a frame in a wooden vessel.
verb (used with object)
- to cover or furnish with a floor.
- to bring down to the floor or ground; knock down: He floored his opponent with one blow.
- to overwhelm; defeat.
- to confound or puzzle; nonplus: I was floored by the problem.
- Also floorboard. to push (a foot-operated accelerator pedal) all the way down to the floor of a vehicle, for maximum speed or power.
- mop/wipe the floor with, Informal. to overwhelm completely; defeat: He expected to mop the floor with his opponents.
- take the floor, to arise to address a meeting.
noun
- Also called: flooring the inner lower surface of a room
- a storey of a buildingthe second floor
- a flat bottom surface in or on any structurethe floor of a lift; a dance floor
- the bottom surface of a tunnel, cave, river, sea, etc
- mining an underlying stratum
- nautical the bottom, or the lowermost framing members at the bottom, of a vessel
- that part of a legislative hall in which debate and other business is conducted
- the right to speak in a legislative or deliberative body (esp in the phrases get, have, or be given the floor)
- the room in a stock exchange where trading takes place
- the earth; ground
- a minimum price charged or paida wage floor
- take the floor to begin dancing on a dance floor
verb
- to cover with or construct a floor
- (tr) to knock to the floor or ground
- (tr) informal to disconcert, confound, or defeatto be floored by a problem
Old English flor “floor, pavement, ground, bottom (of a lake, etc.),” from Proto-Germanic *floruz “floor” (cf. Middle Dutch and Dutch vloer, Old Norse flor “floor,” Middle High German vluor, German Flur “field, meadow”), from PIE *plaros “flat surface” (cf. Welsh llawr “ground”), enlarged from *pele- (2) “flat, to spread” (see plane (n.1)).
Meaning “level of a house” is from 1580s. The figurative sense in legislative assemblies (as opposed to the platform) is first recorded 1774. Spanish suelo “floor” is from Latin solum “bottom, ground, soil;” German Boden is cognate with English bottom. Floor plan attested from 1867.
early 15c., “to furnish with a floor,” from floor (n.). Sense of “puzzle, confound” is 1830, from notion of “knock down to the floor” (1640s). Related: Floored; flooring.
see ground floor; mop up the floor with; sink through the floor; take the floor; walk the floor.