floating island

noun

1. a dessert consisting of boiled custard with portions of meringue, whipped cream, or whipped egg whites and sometimes jelly floating upon it or around it.
2. a floating mass of earth and partly decayed vegetation held together by interlacing roots, as on a lake: usually formed by the accumulation of plant litter; sometimes artificially built on wooden platforms, as in Asia.

floating island

noun

1. a floating mass of soil held together by vegetation

Word History and Origins

Origin of floating island¹

First recorded in 1630–40

Example Sentences

There was Trump’s bonkers Madison Square Garden rally, situated in a state that Harris will end up winning by double digits, where some sophomoric comedian cracked jokes about how Puerto Rico is a “floating island of garbage” and Trump himself made some of his most outlandish remarks of the campaign.

From Slate

The racial grievance remained – undocumented immigrants were still described as criminals and even people “poisoning the blood of our country;” Puerto Rico was described as a floating island of trash—but it was better couched in issue-specific terms.

From Slate

You know, the roast comic who appeared at Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden nouveau Bund rally and called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean.”

From Salon

Trump is running around the country holding rallies where speakers refer to the Democratic nominee for president as “the Antichrist,” call Puerto Rico—an island full of birthright American citizens—a “floating island of garbage,” and then turn it over to the headliner, Donald Trump, to declare that Democrats are “the enemy within,” a completely insane claim that he has been making for years with virtually no consequence.

From Slate

When a comedian at Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally called Puerto Rico "a floating island of garbage", it sparked backlash from many in the Latino community.

From BBC