as in debris
the portion or bits of something left over or behind after it has been destroyed
the expanse of tree stumps represented the detritus of a vast forest that had been mercilessly clear-cut
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of detritus
Collectively, these tales form a sort of jigsaw puzzle, in which the minor character from one episode becomes the primary focus of the next or a plot-driving prop resurfaces later as background detritus.
—
Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2025
The debris caused flight disruptions, and one piece of detritus struck a vehicle on the island of South Caicos, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN, 28 Feb. 2025
Sports journalists can collect a lot of detritus: old ID cards, press credentials to get into big games, phones that stop working or become obsolete.
—Victor Mather, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2025
And yet the system’s detritus litters every corner of these public lands.
—James Pogue, Harper's Magazine, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detritus
Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2025
The debris caused flight disruptions, and one piece of detritus struck a vehicle on the island of South Caicos, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN, 28 Feb. 2025
Sports journalists can collect a lot of detritus: old ID cards, press credentials to get into big games, phones that stop working or become obsolete.
—Victor Mather, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2025
And yet the system’s detritus litters every corner of these public lands.
—James Pogue, Harper's Magazine, 19 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detritus
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detritus
Noun
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Inspectors found old food debris accumulated on the back of the meat slicer.—
Camila Pedrosa,
Sacbee.com,
4 Apr. 2025
-
Winds can be powerful enough to jostle cars, topple power lines and litter debris on the ground.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
4 Apr. 2025
Noun
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At least two of the dead were construction workers who were killed by falling rubble or debris, rescue worker Songwut Wangpon told reporters.—
David Rising,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2025
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So far, federal cleanup crews have cleared ash and rubble from more than 860 properties, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Due to the marshy terrain, much of the plane was underwater, and officials had to make their way to the wreckage by airboat.—
Latoya Gayle,
People.com,
5 Apr. 2025
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The book revealed the emotional wreckage that lay just beneath the seductive, glittering surface of a certain sector of France’s progressive cultural élite.—
Leslie Camhi,
New Yorker,
4 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Detritus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detritus. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
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