as in loads
a considerable amount
the babysitter had to listen to a whole raft of rules before she was allowed to even pick up the baby
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Recent Examples of rafts
Terry Collins, USA Today, 25 Feb. 2026
People hurl wooden crates overboard, tumble off rafts, and frantically don life jackets—sometimes all at once.
—Kristen Geil, Outside, 24 Feb. 2026
Visitors can paddle across its still surface on flat bamboo rafts or swim out to nearby monkey-less Monkey Island and spend the afternoon relaxing on its beautiful beach.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 23 Feb. 2026
And fire ants use their waxy, water-repellent coating and textured exoskeletons to trap air; during floods, thousands cling together to make buoyant, living rafts that can survive 12 days and possibly longer.
—Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 3 Feb. 2026
They can be linked together to form rafts or floating platforms.
—Alex Knapp, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Diving bell spiders, for example, trap air bubbles to survive underwater, while fire ants link their water-repellent bodies together to form floating rafts during floods.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 28 Jan. 2026
Yet the massive Coast Guard operation to prevent Cubans, who usually arrive on homemade boats and rafts, and Haitians, usually arriving on overloaded sailboats and rustic freighters, from landing continued.
—Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 16 Jan. 2026
In the summer, spider plants produce small white flowers and rafts of baby spider plants on long, wiry stalks that trail from the plant.
—Leanne Potts, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Jan. 2026
Noun
The volunteer group's flights centered on spotting Cuban refugees fleeing their homeland and attempting to come to the United States, often in makeshift boats or rafts.
—Terry Collins, USA Today, 25 Feb. 2026
People hurl wooden crates overboard, tumble off rafts, and frantically don life jackets—sometimes all at once.
—Kristen Geil, Outside, 24 Feb. 2026
Visitors can paddle across its still surface on flat bamboo rafts or swim out to nearby monkey-less Monkey Island and spend the afternoon relaxing on its beautiful beach.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 23 Feb. 2026
And fire ants use their waxy, water-repellent coating and textured exoskeletons to trap air; during floods, thousands cling together to make buoyant, living rafts that can survive 12 days and possibly longer.
—Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 3 Feb. 2026
They can be linked together to form rafts or floating platforms.
—Alex Knapp, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Diving bell spiders, for example, trap air bubbles to survive underwater, while fire ants link their water-repellent bodies together to form floating rafts during floods.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 28 Jan. 2026
Yet the massive Coast Guard operation to prevent Cubans, who usually arrive on homemade boats and rafts, and Haitians, usually arriving on overloaded sailboats and rustic freighters, from landing continued.
—Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 16 Jan. 2026
In the summer, spider plants produce small white flowers and rafts of baby spider plants on long, wiry stalks that trail from the plant.
—Leanne Potts, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rafts
Noun
-
Accessibility Hotel Thaynes has loads of accessibility accommodations for those who require it.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Sagging Rooflines Heavy snow and ice loads can cause your roofline to bow or sag.—
Asia London Palomba,
The Spruce,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The prosecution displayed dozens of items of evidence in front of the jury, including guns that were found during home searches and an antifa flag.—
Emerson Clarridge
Updated March 13,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Mar. 2026
-
Southern California also has seen a resurgence of the industry in recent years, with dozens of aerospace, defense tech and weapons startups planting their headquarters here.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Cut with a curved outer seam that balloons slightly through the thigh before tapering at the ankle, the shape is all about creating volume.—
Daisy Maldonado,
InStyle,
29 Dec. 2025
-
The mid-rise jeans have an exaggerated barrel silhouette that balloons out at the knee and tapers into a wide-leg fit at the ankle.—
Clara McMahon,
PEOPLE,
6 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Remove thick, dense piles of wet and matted leaves, or consider gently fluffing them up with a rake.—
Heather Zidack,
Hartford Courant,
14 Mar. 2026
-
Don't leave piles of mulch, compost, or weeds lying around the vegetable garden.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Lawn terrace The cooking area in this outdoor kitchen space floats above an elegant lawn terrace surrounded by a sinuous retaining wall in this space by Richardson & Associates Landscape Architecture.—
Megan Johnson,
Architectural Digest,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Jordan Pope floats home his second bucket of the half for the Longhorns.—
Thomas Jones,
Austin American Statesman,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Based in Sasebo, Japan, the Tripoli, almost 850 feet long and displacing 45,000 tons, is essentially a small aircraft carrier an d carries F-35 stealth fighters and MV-22 Osprey transports as well as landing craft to move troops ashore.—
Brad Lendon,
CNN Money,
17 Mar. 2026
-
An asteroid weighing about 7 tons and traveling at 45,000 miles per hour zoomed over multiple states and lit up the sky as a meteor Tuesday morning, causing a loud boom that some residents mistook for an explosion, officials said.—
Kerry Breen,
CBS News,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
At another center in Hubei, around 100 humanoid robots generate data by repeatedly performing actions such as folding and ironing clothes and wiping tables hundreds of times.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Iran has fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Arab Gulf neighbors during the war, causing significant damage and rattling economies even as most are intercepted.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Hanging Herbs or Plants Plants such as eucalyptus bundles, rosemary, mint, or small potted plants like peace lilies provide a natural aroma that can help your bathroom smell fresh all the time.—
Olivia McIntosh,
Martha Stewart,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Potential bidders would then decide whether to submit proposals for one, two, or all three bundles.—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rafts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rafts. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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