as in debris
the portion or bits of something left over or behind after it has been destroyed
the dispirited family picked through the flotsam of their possessions after the hurricane, looking for anything that could be salvaged
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Recent Examples of flotsam
Saleem’s is a life worth thinking about, more than flotsam tossed by history.
—
Emily Temple
may 27, Literary Hub, 27 May 2025
This replenishment likely comes from collisions between dwarf planets, cometary nuclei, micrometeoroids and other flotsam and jetsam lurking in the dark of the debris disk.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 19 May 2025
Jupiter’s location in the path of the Gulf Stream means there’s a constant flow of tropical water that improves the ocean’s clarity and visibility by carrying out any algae, flotsam, or runoff that accumulates.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 20 May 2025
That Jia could make anything out of that flotsam and jetsam is astonishing, but his ability to not only recreate those time frames but craft all of it into a woozy, free-floating memory piece is miraculous.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for flotsam
Emily Temple
may 27, Literary Hub, 27 May 2025
This replenishment likely comes from collisions between dwarf planets, cometary nuclei, micrometeoroids and other flotsam and jetsam lurking in the dark of the debris disk.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 19 May 2025
Jupiter’s location in the path of the Gulf Stream means there’s a constant flow of tropical water that improves the ocean’s clarity and visibility by carrying out any algae, flotsam, or runoff that accumulates.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 20 May 2025
That Jia could make anything out of that flotsam and jetsam is astonishing, but his ability to not only recreate those time frames but craft all of it into a woozy, free-floating memory piece is miraculous.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for flotsam
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flotsam
Noun
-
On the morning of Aug. 13, a three-person city crew equipped with a skid steer, a dump truck, shovels and rakes was making its way up North 19th Street, picking up pile after pile of debris sitting outside homes.—
Alison Dirr,
jsonline.com,
13 Aug. 2025
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That said, while a bit of debris escaped after powering down, the vacuum still delivered from start to finish.—
Toni Sutton,
People.com,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
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File photo: Ukrainian rescue workers survey the rubble of a residential building hit during a Russian overnight drone and missile strike in Kyiv, Ukraine on June 23, 2025.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Aug. 2025
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So there is no way to look at the rubble in Gaza and the death toll estimates and offer a mathematical proof that Israel is failing to exercise adequate restraint.—
Ross Douthat,
Mercury News,
31 July 2025
Noun
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Creating the aftermath of Maginot’s wreckage in Prodigy City was another feat.—
Daron James,
IndieWire,
13 Aug. 2025
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Five other people, all in a third vehicle, were hospitalized with minor injuries and the fourth driver walked away from the wreckage and was treated at the scene.—
Andrea Klick,
Oc Register,
5 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flotsam.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flotsam. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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