Rafts

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A series of buoyant platforms, often linked, that facilitate travel or activities over water surfaces while providing support and stability
2. Various assembled or standalone floating constructs meant for recreational use or transport across aquatic environments
3. A flat structure made of buoyant materials designed to float on water and carry people or goods from one place to another

Etymology: The word "rafts" is simply the plural of "raft" (the third-person verb form is the same spelling), so the history belongs to "raft" itself. That noun arrived in English in the late Middle Ages, and it came from the North Germanic languages rather than from Latin or French, which is unusual for a word about boats. Its earliest ancestor was a term for a beam or stake, so a raft was originally understood as a set of timbers fastened side by side. The Old Norse form "raptr" passed into English with that sense of lashed or joined timbers. Relatives in modern Norwegian and Danish still carry the idea of a thin pole or beam, which shows how closely the floating craft is tied to the wooden pieces it was built from.

Synonyms: floats, boats, barges, platforms, pontoons

Antonyms: sink, submerge, drown, capsize, overturn