Flotsam Definition
flŏtsəm
noun
The wreckage of a ship or its cargo floating at sea.
Webster's New World
Discarded or unimportant things.
American Heritage
Odds and ends.
Webster's New World
People who are considered to be worthless or to have been rejected by society.
American Heritage
Unemployed people who drift from place to place.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
- jetsam
- flotsam-and-jetsam
- refuse
- floating wreckage
- debris
Other Word Forms of Flotsam
Noun
Singular:
flotsam
Plural:
flotsamsOrigin of Flotsam
-
From Anglo-Norman floteson, from Old French flotaison (“a floating”), from floter (“to float”), of Germanic origin (See float.), + -aison, from Latin -atio
From Wiktionary
-
Anglo-Norman floteson from Old French floter to float of Germanic origin pleu- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
Flotsam Is Also Mentioned In
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