raft

[ raft, rahft ]

/ ræft, rɑft /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR raft ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a more or less rigid floating platform made of buoyant material or materials: an inflatable rubber raft.

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

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.

verb (used with object)

to transport on a raft.

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

to travel or cross by raft.

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

verb (used without object)

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

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

Nearby words

raffles, rafflesia, rafinesque, rafraîchissoir, rafsanjani, raft, raft ice, rafter, rafting, raftsman, rafvr

Origin of raft

1250–1300; Middle English rafte, perhaps < Old Norse raptr rafter¹

Definition for raft (2 of 2)

raft

[ raft, rahft ]

/ ræft, rɑft /

noun Informal.

a great quantity; a lot: a raft of trouble.

Origin of raft

1825–35; variant of raff large number (Middle English: abundance)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for raft

He spent 47 days on a raft and survived only to be captured by the Japanese.
Dick Cheney vs. ‘Unbroken’|Mike Barnicle|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A raft of thrillers, sci-fi movies, and sinister dramas followed.
Can Condon's Freak Show Win Broadway?|Tim Teeman|November 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Complaints about the raft of security measures are dismissed.
When ISIS Is An Excuse For A Police State|Jamie Dettmer|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Goldman, wisely, does not raise a raft of questions that drown a writer in the answering.
Mexico City: Francisco Goldman’s Other Lost Love|Jason Berry|September 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST

We brainstormed different props to bring out during my set including super soakers, Chinese dragons and … the RAFT.
DJ Steve Aoki: To Cake or Not To Cake|Steve Aoki|August 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Hinpoha called again: Please come, Sahwah, we need you to steer the raft.
The Camp Fire Girls at Onoway House|Hildegard G. Frey
In order to do this, Barret had to get upon the raft, and he found that it bore him easily as well as the boy.
The Eagle Cliff|R.M. Ballantyne
I wanted to make a raft fit to carry on shore a great variety of articles far too large and heavy for our present boat.
The Swiss Family Robinson|Johann David Wyss
All saw the danger, and the boldest, even the stout Friar himself, avoided setting foot on the raft.
Ivanhoe|Walter Scott
Well, but what's become of the other fellows on the raft—Moncrief, Sedgefield, and the others?
The Hero of Garside School|J. Harwood Panting

British Dictionary definitions for raft (1 of 2)

raft

/ (rɑːft) /

noun

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

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

verb

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

Derived Forms

rafting, noun

Word Origin for raft

C15: from Old Norse raptr rafter

British Dictionary definitions for raft (2 of 2)

raft

/ (rɑːft) /

noun

informal a large collection or amounta raft of old notebooks discovered in a cupboard

Word Origin for raft

C19: from raff

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012