detritus

[ dih-trahy-tuhs ]

noun

1. rock in small particles or other material worn or broken away from a mass, as by the action of water or glacial ice.
2. any disintegrated material; debris.

detritus

/ dɪˈtraɪtəs /

noun

1. a loose mass of stones, silt, etc, worn away from rocks
2. an accumulation of disintegrated material or debris
3. the organic debris formed from the decay of organisms

detritus

/ dĭ-trī′təs /

1. Loose fragments, such as sand or gravel, that have been worn away from rock.
2. Matter produced by the decay or disintegration of an organic substance.

Derived Forms

• deˈtrital, adjective

Other Words From

• de·trital adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of detritus¹

1785–95; < French détritus < Latin: a rubbing away, equivalent to dētrī-, variant stem of dēterere to wear down, rub off ( de- de- + terere to rub) + -tus suffix of v. action

Word History and Origins

Origin of detritus¹

C18: from French détritus, from Latin dētrītus a rubbing away; see detriment

Example Sentences

A study released by Pew Research in September showed people were exponentially more likely to get "news" from social media detritus than legitimate news outlets.

From Salon

Somewhere underneath the detritus was the town, buried and abandoned.

From Los Angeles Times

It is surrounded by a mess of rubble and pieces of metal, the detritus from bombed-out buildings nearby.

From BBC

Moses would struggle cleaning up the Chip Kelly detritus.

From Los Angeles Times

Wright recalls how, as a child, he would play in the sewer, where he would spend hours fashioning all manner of detritus into toys.

From Salon

Related Words

• rubble