raft
raft1 / raft/ • n. a flat buoyant structure of timber or other materials fastened together, used as a boat or floating platform. ∎ a small, inflatable rubber or plastic boat, esp. one for use in emergencies. ∎ a floating mass of fallen trees, vegetation, ice, or other material. ∎ a dense flock of swimming birds or mammals: great rafts of cormorants, often 5,000 strong. ∎ a layer of reinforced concrete forming the foundation of a building.• v. 1. [intr.] travel on or as if on a raft: I have rafted along the Rio Grande. ∎ [tr.] transport on or as a raft: the stores were rafted ashore I rafted 400 logs to my mill. ∎ (of an ice floe) be driven on top of or underneath another floe. ∎ [tr.] transport (timber) on water in the form of a raft.2. [tr.] bring or fasten together (a number of boats or other objects) side by side.raft2 • n. a large amount of something: a raft of government initiatives.
