raft

¹

[raft, rahft]

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.

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

[raft, rahft]

noun

Informal.

1. a great quantity; a lot.

   a whole raft of trouble.

raft

¹

/ 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

verb

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

raft

²

/ rɑːft /

noun

1. informal,  a large collection or amount

   a raft of old notebooks discovered in a cupboard

Other Word Forms

• rafting noun

Word History and Origins

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of raft¹

C15: from Old Norse raptr _rafter

Origin of raft²

C19: from _raff

Example Sentences

Yvette Cooper has announced a funding boost for Ukraine alongside a raft of new sanctions on Russia, as she visits Kyiv in her first overseas trip as foreign secretary.

From BBC

She said: "The uncomfortable truth is this Bill is silent on a whole raft of issues which means we are in the dark about how assisted dying would work in practice."

From BBC

Belarus is eager to build an economic relationship with the US having been hit with a raft of Western sanctions because of connection to Russia's war in Ukraine.

From BBC

This will be crucial in years to come as a raft of new drugs to combat early-stage disease are in the final stages of clinical trials.

From BBC

Imamoglu is accused of a raft of corruption charges, which he strongly denies – "Kafkaesque charges" in his words.

From BBC

Related Words

• barge 
• boat 
• life raft 
• lifeboat