Synonyms of residue

residue

noun

ˈre-zə-ˌdü 

1

as in debris

the portion or bits of something left over or behind after it has been destroyed

the detective noticed an ashy residue in the sink and deduced that a piece of paper had been burned there

Synonyms & Similar Words

• debris
• rubble
• wreckage
• remains
• ruins
• remnant
• ashes
• detritus
• wreck
• flotsam
• dust
• leavings
• garbage
• junk
• litter
• chaff
• jetsam
• waste
• trash
• dross
• scrap
• rubbish
• refuse
• deadwood
• riffraff

2

as in remainder

a remaining group or portion

the residue of our Thanksgiving feast consisted of a denuded turkey carcass and a couple rolls

Synonyms & Similar Words

• remainder
• rest
• remnant
• remains
• residuum
• leavings
• leftovers
• odds and ends
• fragment
• balance
• vestige
• excess
• surplus
• stump
• scrap
• butt
• overabundance
• stub
• overage
• superfluity
• overflow
• fat
• oversupply
• surfeit
• overkill
• overmuch
• superabundance
• scraping(s)
• oddment

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• body
• most
• weight
• mass
• bulk
• main

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of residue

Investigators never recovered the murder weapon, and Flynn was never tested for gunshot residue. — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026

The deodorants that made the cut applied smoothly without excessive residue or irritation and helped keep underarms feeling fresh throughout the day. — Glamour, 2 Oct. 2026

From the time of Bitcoin’s 2009 launch, crypto had occupied the murkier end of legal gray zones; in the eyes of CFTC regulators, crypto prediction markets, which inherited the moral and legal residue of gambling prohibition, were doubly marked. — Simon Denny, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026

Harnessing a specific type of wallpaper, called NuWallpaper, this creation leaves no sticky residue in its wake and will stick to pretty much anything that’s flat. — Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 30 Sep. 2026