Words that start with F

Something floats if you put it on the top of a liquid like water and it stays on the top.

Things float because they are less dense than the liquid they are in. For example, the duck in the picture floats because the amount of duck that is below the water level weighs less than the amount of water that would be where the duck is - a concept called displacement.

If you are in a swimming pool with a foam kickboard that floats, try holding it under the water. You can also try this with a ping-pong ball or a polystyrene foam ball in a big bowl of water. It is very hard to get something that floats to go under the water, and if you hold it right down and then let it go it might even pop right out of the water! It is this force that holds floating things up.

The opposite of float is sink.

A flood is water covering or submerging land. Floods can happen when it rains faster than the ground can soak up the water or let it run away, or by a rising river that bursts its banks. Floods can also be caused by very high tides or storms that push seawater inland.

Something is floppy if it is soft and bendy and falls down easily. The rabbit in the picture has floppy ears.

Floral is the name for a pattern, usually used on fabric, that is made up of pictures of flowers. Floral prints are very popular on skirts, dresses and on loungeroom furniture.

Floss is a kind of thin, flat, waxed thread that you use to clean between your teeth with. Keeping your teeth and gums clean keeps them healthy.

Flour is a fine, white powder made from milling grain. You can make flour from many grains, including wheat, corn or rice.
Flour is used to make a huge variety of foods, like bread, cakes, cookies, pancakes or waffles.
You can't eat flour on its own, it has to be mixed with something else and cooked first.

Flowers are the part of a plant that is used to make seeds, which grow into baby plants. Flowers are usually very pretty. The reason for this is the plant needs insects to come to the flowers and fertilize them so seeds can develop. Insects are attracted to the flowers by their colour and the sweet nectar that the plant grows inside the flower as a reward for the insects.

A flue is a pipe or duct that carries smoke away from a stove or fireplace.
Flues are often hidden inside a chimney.

Something is fluffy if it looks or feels like it is made out of fluff. Clouds, some cats, long-haired rabbits and baby chicks are fluffy.

A flute is a thin, wind instrument that is usually made out of silver or wood. You play it by blowing across a small hole at one end, and opening and closing holes along the length of the flute to change the note it plays. Someone who plays a flute is a flautist.