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 debris2 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>