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Definition of rafter : 1. A raftsman.
2. Originally, any rough and somewhat heavy piece of timber. Now, commonly, one of the timbers of a roof which are put on sloping, according to the inclination of the roof. See Illust. of Queen- post.
3. To furnish with rafters, as a house.
4. To make into rafters, as timber.
5. To plow so as to turn the grass side of each furrow upon an unplowed ridge; to ridge.

Synonyms:

hinderance, deterrent, raftsman, impediment, raftman, balk, handicap, baulk, hindrance, check, matter

jack rafter, transom, crossbeam, rib, lintel, tie, I beam, crosstie, stud, beam, spar, ridgepole, sill, common rafter, valley rafter, transverse, strut, truss, roof beam, hip rafter, girder, timber, joist

Usage examples:

• He took another grip on the rafter just as he would have let go. - "Children of the Tenements", Jacob A. Riis.
• Set the fellow upon his feet, and bind fast his hands to yon rafter. - "Tom Tufton's Travels", Evelyn Everett-Green.
• They had reached a point about fifty yards from the shacks, two of which were well- nigh demolished, when they heard a voice and turning saw Warde Hollister drop from a rafter and come running toward them. - "Roy Blakeley in the Haunted Camp", Percy Keese Fitzhugh.