Nautical term for the depth of a ship's keel below the waterline.
This ship has a draft of 10 meters.
喫水が深い船は浅い港に入れない。
Ships with a deep draft cannot enter shallow ports.
waterline (of a ship)
full load draft; gauge
Standard kanji form for 'draft' (nautical).
Variant kanji form; 吃 is a less common alternative to 喫 in this compound.
Compound of 喫 (eat/drink, here used in the sense of 'take in') and 水 (water), referring to the depth of water a ship 'takes in' or displaces. The variant 吃水 uses a character with similar meaning.