noun
Etymology
Origin of driftwood
Explanation
Those smooth sticks and logs you see washed up on the beach are known as driftwood. They've been worn by the motion of the water over time. You can find driftwood on the shore of oceans, lakes, and rivers, where it's been tossed by the tide or blown by the wind. While driftwood is officially a type of debris or trash, it's often quite lovely, smoothed into interesting shapes by the water. Driftwood can originate from shipwrecks, rotted pilings, or trees that have been washed into the sea by storms. As it decomposes, beached ocean driftwood often forms the foundation of sand dunes.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The Housemaid” stumbles, and it doesn’t help that Sweeney spends much of the film meandering throughout its narrative like a piece of driftwood that keeps washing back onto the shore.
From Salon • Jan. 31, 2026
Soldiers and police had helped clear the debris and driftwood.
From Barron's • Dec. 25, 2025
At low tide, the sea is not visible beyond the expanse of grassland, but the area is littered with driftwood, some plastic waste and there is even a small, upturned boat nearby.
From BBC • May 30, 2025
Elsewhere, a gravel beach with dune plantings, driftwood logs and boulders defines the western edge where the landscape meets Puget Sound.
From Seattle Times • May 25, 2024
Mrs. Palmer sat on a driftwood log, took off her shoes and socks, and rolled up her jeans.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
