Main Entry: flot·sam

Pronunciation: \ˈflät-səm\

Function: noun

Etymology: Anglo-French floteson, from floter to float, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English flotian to float, flota ship

Date: circa 1607

1 : floating wreckage of a ship or its cargo; broadly : floating debris
2 a : a floating population (as of emigrants or castaways) <human flotsam> b : miscellaneous or unimportant material <a notebook filled with flotsam and jetsam> c : debris, remains <the village…built on the flotsam of war — Stan Sesser>