noun
Historical enclosed seat carried by bearers, used for transporting people or, in funerary contexts, a corpse.
江戸時代、大名は輿に乗って移動した。
In the Edo period, feudal lords traveled by palanquin.
葬列では、遺体を乗せた輿がゆっくりと進んだ。
In the funeral procession, the bier carrying the body moved slowly.
noun
portable shrine
Used in festivals to carry a deity; more commonly called 神輿 (みこし) in modern Japanese.
祭りでは、若者たちが輿を担いで町を練り歩いた。
At the festival, young people carried the portable shrine through the town.
Specifically a portable shrine used in Shinto festivals; 輿 alone can refer to any palanquin or bier, but 神輿 is the standard modern term for the festival object.
A simpler, often open-sided palanquin; 輿 is more formal and enclosed, historically used by higher-ranking individuals.
The kanji 輿 depicts a vehicle carried by hands; the reading こし is native Japanese. The exact derivation is uncertain, but the word has been used since ancient times for a carried conveyance.