noun
raft
A flat structure made of logs, bamboo, or other materials tied together, used as a boat or for floating on water.
川をいかだで下る。
Go down the river on a raft.
彼らは丸太を組んでいかだを作った。
They built a raft by tying logs together.
noun
forearm guard (made of thin metal plates)
Historical armor piece; thin metal plates worn on the forearm for protection. Rarely encountered outside historical or martial contexts.
甲冑の一部として、いかだを腕に装着した。
As part of the armor, they wore forearm guards on their arms.
noun
skewered baby-eel kabayaki
A food item consisting of several small eels skewered together and grilled in kabayaki style, resembling a raft. Used in culinary contexts.
See also: 蒲焼
この店の名物は、いかだと呼ばれる子ウナギの蒲焼きだ。
The specialty of this restaurant is skewered baby-eel kabayaki, called ikada.
Rarely used kanji form for raft.
ボート is a general term for a small boat, often rowed or motorized, while いかだ specifically refers to a raft made of bound logs or similar materials.
蒲焼 is the general term for eel or fish prepared in the kabayaki style; いかだ in the food sense refers specifically to a skewer of multiple small eels arranged like a raft.
The origin is uncertain. The word いかだ has been used since Old Japanese to mean a raft. The kanji 筏 is a phono-semantic compound, but the exact derivation of the Japanese word is unclear.