as in debris
the portion or bits of something left over or behind after it has been destroyed
the expanse of tree stumps represented the detritus of a vast forest that had been mercilessly clear-cut
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of detritus
Beyond the gate there’s a floating coagulation of detritus.
¶ Sebastopol
The occasional aberration forms in the air.
—
Ariel Saramandi, The Dial, 29 July 2025
Should nature call, there are shovel-ready handlers to remove the detritus.
—Kathy Berdan, Twin Cities, 27 July 2025
Republic Services resumed limited trash pickup services to a broad swath of Contra Costa County, as well as other pockets of the Bay Area, after a crippling strike threatened to leave trash and other detritus piling up outside houses and businesses across the region.
—Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 16 July 2025
Throwing that detritus away is the third-most expensive component of sweeping.
—Sacbee.com, 14 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for detritus
Ariel Saramandi, The Dial, 29 July 2025
Should nature call, there are shovel-ready handlers to remove the detritus.
—Kathy Berdan, Twin Cities, 27 July 2025
Republic Services resumed limited trash pickup services to a broad swath of Contra Costa County, as well as other pockets of the Bay Area, after a crippling strike threatened to leave trash and other detritus piling up outside houses and businesses across the region.
—Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 16 July 2025
Throwing that detritus away is the third-most expensive component of sweeping.
—Sacbee.com, 14 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for detritus
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detritus
Noun
-
Vipsun Cordless Vacuum Run the vacuum over hard floors and carpets to suck up dirt, pet hair, dust, crumbs and other debris.—
Isabel Garcia,
PEOPLE,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Second, wind can blow dust, leaves, sticks, and other debris onto your wet stain, leaving a mess that is nearly impossible to clean up.—
Kamron Sanders,
Better Homes & Gardens,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
There’s no time to get your bearings; an EDM drop smashes everything to pieces, then a pained voice croons in the rubble while drunkenly mashing a detuned guitar.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
27 Aug. 2025
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At the base of the mural, surrounded by rubble, a boy and girl huddle together, the girl leaning on the boy, his arm wrapped around her.—
Philip Metres
August 27,
Literary Hub,
27 Aug. 2025
Noun
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For 9/11, three New York City firefighters raising an American flag amid the wreckage of the World Trade Center.—
Susan Page,
USA Today,
29 Aug. 2025
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What can be pieced together shows a man who reinvented himself repeatedly, leaving wreckage behind each time.—
Cheyenne Roundtree,
Rolling Stone,
28 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Sardinia, an Italian island in the Mediterranean just south of France's Corsica, is famed for its beaches and ancient ruins.—
Andrea Margolis,
FOXNews.com,
4 Sep. 2025
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Well, or how the ancient ruins of Petra stole the show in the final scenes of Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989).—
Mathew Scott,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Detritus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detritus. Accessed 7 Sep. 2025.
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