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Synonyms

driftwood

American  
[drift-wood] / ˈdrɪftˌwʊd /

noun

  1. wood floating on a body of water or cast ashore by it.

  2. such wood adapted for use in interior decoration.

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or made of driftwood.

    a driftwood lamp.
driftwood British  
/ ˈdrɪftˌwʊd /

noun

  1. wood floating on or washed ashore by the sea or other body of water

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of driftwood

First recorded in 1605–15; drift + wood 1

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

In the midst of this waits Moonstone Beach, often strewn with driftwood, and Moonstone Beach Drive, which is lined by about a dozen inns and boutique hotels.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 1, 2025

So of the song of the Shadow there remain only a few scraps of legend, carried like driftwood from isle to isle over the long years.

From "A Wizard of Earthsea" by Ursula K. Le Guin

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.