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
Full of the flotsam and jetsam of everyday affairs.
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Maya Singer, Vogue, 1 July 2024
The headlamps of their truck illuminated little more than a wedge of flotsam.
—Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
Living in White Plains, N.Y., in the 1980s, Mrs. Wallace galvanized a broad campaign to rescue the river, at the time an inaccessible 23-mile watercourse that was home to more flotsam, like the carcasses of junked cars and rusted refrigerators, than fauna.
—Sam Roberts, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024
At dawn, the water flowed through some city streets like coastal rivers, moving jellyfish, seaweed and flotsam several blocks landward.
—Reuters, CNN, 7 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for flotsam 
Maya Singer, Vogue, 1 July 2024
The headlamps of their truck illuminated little more than a wedge of flotsam.
—Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
Living in White Plains, N.Y., in the 1980s, Mrs. Wallace galvanized a broad campaign to rescue the river, at the time an inaccessible 23-mile watercourse that was home to more flotsam, like the carcasses of junked cars and rusted refrigerators, than fauna.
—Sam Roberts, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024
At dawn, the water flowed through some city streets like coastal rivers, moving jellyfish, seaweed and flotsam several blocks landward.
—Reuters, CNN, 7 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for flotsam
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flotsam
Noun
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Inspectors noted that dish racks had deteriorated with significant debris buildup.Hannah Poukish, Sacramento Bee, 10 Jan. 2025
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But work at the 30-acre site remains on hold after a demolition mishap last month that spilled debris from a wall into the Chicago River.Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Tears as Dog Found Alive In Rubble From The Eaton Fire By Alyce Collins Life and Trends Reporter 0 As the Los Angeles wildfires continue to ravage homes and communities, internet users have been reduced to tears by a dog that was found injured in the rubble.Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 2025
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But just as important, say trauma veterans and professionals, is the psychological reconstruction — the Herculean challenge of restoring the sense of confidence and hope now also reduced to rubble.Steven Zeitchik, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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In 1988, Swire’s daughter was one of 270 people killed in the bombing of an American jetliner, Pan Am Flight 103, the wreckage of which crashed in the remote Scottish town of Lockerbie.Calum Marsh, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2025
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Instead, audiences are left to gawk at the wreckage.Kyndall Cunningham, Vox, 6 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near flotsam
Cite this Entry
“Flotsam.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flotsam. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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