detritus
9
8.2
- noun
- /dɪˈtraɪtəs/
:
detrito
- If it ever existed, detritus and erosion had long ago expunged it from view.
- detritus from aquatic sediments
- detritus from plants
- detritus generated by vegetation
And it only kicks into high gear during deep sleep and it sort of washes out all of the metabolic detritus of the day.
- And it only kicks into high gear during deep sleep and it sort of washes out all of the metabolic detritus of the day.
- So yeah, I decorate my house with the detritus of travelling the world with Tony, and I'm fucking proud of it, of junk all over my house.
- The way Teresa hot Kyung Cha dead tongue licks the book yet unwritten, the way bodily detritus becomes the meat of the book.
- The the the new one that develops incorporates much of what is gone before at least an outline, but sort of leaves behind the detritus.
Examples
-
Meredydd hurried forward along the gently sloping bank, feet slipping in the grass and detritus from overhanging trees.
Fiction book (1992) -
All begin life as non-cannibalistic omnivores, feeding mostly on detritus and plankton.
Academic text (1997) -
This all goes down and becomes part of the detritus food web.
-
The detritus of a coming war.
-
What does the street furniture and detritus suggest to an alien?
Academic text (2009) -
Alex was fishing through the detritus around him, finding ...
Fiction book (2000) -
Great writers like these keep the best words and weed out the detritus.
Academic text (2011) -
Yeah, well, maybe I was trying to protect my Egyptian faience pot from the detritus.
-
Below us was shattered rock, snow, blocks of ice, and the debris and detritus of the avalanche.
Fiction book (1996) -
The ground is nearly invisible under the detritus of cigarette packs and empty food containers.
Synonyms
444
1.0
Things people throw away because they are unwanted
373
1.1
Old or broken things that are no longer useful
304
3.6
Broken parts that remain after something is badly damaged
302
4.1
Scattered broken pieces left after something is destroyed
179
2.1
A small piece left over or thrown away
132
3.2
Broken pieces of stone or brick left after a building is destroyed
104
4.2
A small piece, often cloth, left when the rest is used or thrown away
86
3.6
Things left after the rest is used, eaten, or taken away
22
1.0
Things people throw away because they are not wanted
1
7.4
Unwanted things left behind, often washed up on a beach
Small pieces of rubbish left behind in a place
Things people throw away because they are not useful
How Much
Surface Forms
Etymology
Detritus comes from Latin parts de- 'off' and terere 'to rub', so it originally meant 'rubbed off' or worn away. Think of detritus as the small bits left when something is rubbed, broken, or worn down, which is why it now means loose fragments or debris.