debris

or dé·bris

[ duh-bree, dey-breeor, especially British, deb-ree ]

noun

1. the remains of anything broken down or destroyed; ruins; rubble:

   the debris of buildings after an air raid.

   Synonyms: trash, litter, detritus

2. Geology. an accumulation of loose fragments of rock.

debris

/ ˈdeɪbrɪ; ˈdɛbrɪ /

noun

1. fragments or remnants of something destroyed or broken; rubble
2. a collection of loose material derived from rocks, or an accumulation of animal or vegetable matter

Word History and Origins

Origin of debris¹

First recorded in 1700–10; from French débris, Middle French debris, derivative of debriser “to break up (into pieces),” Old French debrisier, from de- de- + brisier “to break” ( bruise )

Word History and Origins

Origin of debris¹

C18: from French, from obsolete debrisier to break into pieces, from bruisier to shatter, of Celtic origin

Example Sentences

Even in some of the most remote places on Earth, a fine rain of human-made debris pollutes the land and oceans.

From Popular-Science

The skiers were buried in 20 feet of snow and debris and were found with the help of avalanche beacons, which they were all wearing.

From Washington Post

For Feros, the vistas have more depth, along with additional smoke, fire and debris, to help visualize a “crumbling megatropolis,” Meek said.

From Washington Post

Satellite and mega-constellation operators must consider ways of reducing the debris caused by these satellites above and beyond the usual procedure, in order to maintain a sustainable use of low Earth orbit.

From Singularity Hub 

It became a regular feature of vehicles, such as early cars and trolleys whose dashboards were relatively bare-bones wood or metal and leather barriers that kept debris from being “dashed” up from the ground and onto passengers.

From Washington Post

Search teams find dozens of people and jet debris floating in the Java Sea, as the airline confirms the wreckage is from QZ8501.

From The Daily Beast

Strong currents and winds, however, mean any debris could be drifting up to 31 miles a day eastward, away from the impact zone.

From The Daily Beast

A number of bottles and other debris came down upon the demonstrators and cops on the roadway from the pedestrian walkway above.

From The Daily Beast

I asked a former NASA astronaut, who cannot be quoted on the record, to look at photographs of the debris.

From The Daily Beast

He went over to his wife, and she pointed to a piece of metal that lay atop some storm-tossed debris.

From The Daily Beast

A granular compound, like sandstone recomposed from the debris of granite.

From Project Gutenberg

Another specimen of sandstone is friable, of a light flesh-red colour, and apparently composed of the debris of granite.

From Project Gutenberg

The rock sides and debris to the left of the road, for example, had the most singular and varied forms.

From Project Gutenberg

Yesterday the ground appeared, and a hard rain coming down at the same time washed off much of the unwholesome debris.

From Project Gutenberg

Angular debris fallen from above varying in thickness from one to ten feet.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• detritus
• junk
• remains
• rubbish
• rubble
• trash
• wreck
• wreckage