Meanings
verbfloat like a butterfly (third-person singular simple present floats like a butterfly, present participle floating like a butterfly, simple past and past participle floated like a butterfly)
present singular third person floats like a butterfly · participle present floating like a butterfly · participle past floated like a butterfly · past floated like a butterfly
- colloquialsimileTo move effortlessly and in an agile fashion.
Origin
Coined by US boxer Muhammad Ali.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
float like a butterfly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/float%20like%20a%20butterfly
MLA
“float like a butterfly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/float%20like%20a%20butterfly. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “float like a butterfly,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/float%20like%20a%20butterfly.
Source: float like a butterfly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.