jettison

1 of 2

verb

jet·​ti·​son ˈje-tə-sən 

-zən

jettisoned; jettisoning; jettisons

transitive verb

1

: to get rid of as superfluous or encumbering : omit or forgo as part of a plan or as the result of some other decision

must be prepared to jettison many romantic notions

—Christopher Catling

2

: to drop (cargo) to lighten a ship's load in time of distress

3

: to drop from an aircraft or spacecraft in flight

jettisonable

ˈje-tə-sə-nə-bəl 

-zə-

adjective

jettison

2 of 2

noun

: a voluntary sacrifice of cargo to lighten a ship's load in time of distress

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The Origin of Jettison

Jettison comes from Anglo-French geteson, which means literally "action of throwing" and is related to the Latin verb jactare, meaning "to throw." The noun jettison refers to a voluntary sacrifice of cargo to lighten a ship's load in time of distress, and it is the source of the word jetsam (the name for goods "jettisoned"); the word is often paired with flotsam ("floating wreckage"). These days you don't have to be on a sinking ship to "jettison" something: the verb also means simply "to get rid of."

Synonyms

Verb

• cashier
• cast (off)
• chuck
• deep-six
• discard
• ditch
• dump
• eighty-six
• 86
• exorcise
• exorcize
• fling (off or away)
• junk
• lay by
• lose
• pitch
• reject
• scrap
• shed
• shuck (off)
• slough (off)
• sluff (off)
• throw away
• throw out
• toss
• unload

Noun

• discarding
• disposal
• disposition
• dumping
• junking
• removal
• riddance
• scrapping
• throwing away

Examples of jettison in a Sentence

Verb

The captain gave orders to jettison the cargo.

They jettisoned the fuel and made an emergency landing.

We should jettison these old computers and get new ones.

They jettisoned plans for a vacation.

Noun

with his ship rapidly sinking, the captain ordered a last-ditch jettison of much of its cargo

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The decision to jettison the report’s traditional explanatory narrative was announced to EIA staff in a March 10 internal email, after the document was largely complete following months of work. —Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 5 May 2025

In the first five minutes of the flight, the Atlas V jettisoned its five boosters, payload fairing, and kerosene-fueled first stage. —Alex Goy, ArsTechnica, 29 Apr. 2025

Noun

Instead of backing off, corporations are evolving their diversity programs to focus on what works and jettison what does not, said Joelle Emerson, CEO of culture and inclusion platform Paradigm. —Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 19 May 2025

There’s an even better way to launch a drone: mount it on a rolling trolley that the drone jettisons on takeoff. —David Axe, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English jetteson, from Anglo-French geteson, literally, action of throwing, from Latin jactation-, jactatio, from jactare — more at jet

First Known Use

Verb

1848, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

jettison

verb

jet·​ti·​son

ˈjet-ə-sən,

-ə-zən

1

: to throw goods overboard from a ship or aircraft especially to lighten it in distress

2

: discard entry 1 sense 2

jettison noun