palanquin

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A covered litter carried on poles on the shoulders of four or more bearers, formerly used in eastern Asia.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. A covered conveyance, generally for one person, used in India and elsewhere in the East, borne by means of poles on the shoulders of four or six men. The palanquin proper is a sort of box about 8 feet long, 4 feet wide, and as much in height, with wooden shutters made on the principle of the Venetian blind. It used to be a very common conveyance in India, especially among the European residents, but the introduction of railways and the improvement of the roads have caused it to be almost wholly abandoned by Europeans. In Japan the palanquin is called norimono, and is suspended from a pole or beam passing over the top. A similar conveyance called a kiaotsŭ is extensively used in some parts of China; it is, however, furnished with long shafts before and behind instead of the pole, and is carried by mules. Compare kago.
2. To be carried in a palanquin: sometimes with it.

Wiktionary

1. n. A covered type of litter for a stretched-out passenger, carried on four poles on the shoulders of four or more bearers, as formerly used (also by colonials) in eastern Asia.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. An inclosed carriage or litter, commonly about eight feet long, four feet wide, and four feet high, borne on the shoulders of men by means of two projecting poles, -- used in India, China, etc., for the conveyance of a single person from place to place.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a closed litter carried on the shoulders of four bearers