Buoyant
/ˈbɔɪ.ənt/noun
Able to float or rise in a liquid or gas; cheerful and optimistic.
Did you know?Buoyant comes from French and originally described something that literally floated on water, with the modern “cheerful” sense emerging later from the idea of being lifted up.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bheue-
“to be, become, grow”
Latin
Latin
fieri
“to become, to be made”
Late Latin
Latin
boiare
“to float”
Old French
Old French
boiant
“floating, buoyant”
17th Century
English
buoyant
“floating; able to keep afloat”
18th Century
English
buoyant
“cheerful, uplifted, optimistic”