raft

¹ American  

[raft, rahft] / ræft, rɑft /

noun

1. a more or less rigid floating platform made of buoyant material or materials.

   an inflatable rubber raft.

2. a collection of logs, planks, casks, etc., fastened together for floating on water.

3. life raft.

4. Building Trades. a slab of reinforced concrete providing a footing on yielding soil, usually for a whole building, so that the weight of the soil that would be displaced by the settlement of the building exceeds the weight of the building itself; mat.

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verb (used with object)

1. to transport on a raft.

2. to form (logs or the like) into a raft.

3. to travel or cross by raft.

4. (of an ice floe) to transport (embedded organic or rock debris) from the shore out to sea.

verb (used without object)

1. to use a raft; go or travel on a raft.

2. (of an ice floe) to overlap another ice floe.

raft ² American  

[raft, rahft] / ræft, rɑft /

noun

Informal.

1. a great quantity; a lot.

   a whole raft of trouble.

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raft ¹ British  

/ rɑːft /

noun

1. a buoyant platform of logs, planks, etc, used as a vessel or moored platform

2. a thick slab of reinforced concrete laid over soft ground to provide a foundation for a building

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verb

1. to convey on or travel by raft, or make a raft from

raft ² British  

/ rɑːft /

noun

1. informal a large collection or amount

   a raft of old notebooks discovered in a cupboard

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Other Word Forms

• rafting
  noun

Etymology

Origin of raft¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English raft(e), “(wooden) beam, spear,” from Old Norse raptr rafter ¹

Origin of raft²

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35; variant of raff

Explanation

A raft is a vessel or structure that's made to float on water. You might have an inflatable raft you use for floating around your backyard pool. Rafts come in many forms, from soft and squishy to wooden and permanent, like the rafts built on lakes for swimmers to rest on and dive off. Other rafts are mobile — they're small, flat boats meant for transporting people or goods across a river, for example. If you raft, you travel by raft. Experts guess that raft comes from the Old Norse word raptr, "log."

Example Sentences

Coming to America has forced it to navigate a raft of state and local governments, each with their own peculiarities.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026

In refinancing, your husband would lose a raft of federal protections and flexible deferment and forbearance options.

From MarketWatch • May 15, 2026

At the time of his surrender, Guzmán López faced a raft of U.S. federal charges, which could have carried a life sentence.

From Los Angeles Times • May 10, 2026

A raft of nations are now reportedly mulling a similar social media crackdown.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

On the river, the canoes were tied together in pairs to form a balsa, or raft.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple

Related Words

• barge
• boat
• life raft
• lifeboat