detritus
gb/dɪtɹˈaɪtəs/ us/dɪtɹˈaɪtəs/
C1
English
hulladék, törmelék, detritusz, kőzettörmelék, maradvány, szövettörmelék
NOUN
C1
FORMAL
1
Usage pattern:
the detritus of [activity/place/time]
By morning, the beach was covered in detritus from the storm.
Reggelre a partot a vihar után szétszórt hulladék borította.
She gathered the detritus of the craft project and threw it away.
Összeszedte a kézműveskedés után maradt hulladékot, és kidobta.
The alley was full of detritus—bottles, wrappers, and scraps of paper.
Learner examples
There was detritus on the ground after the festival.
A fesztivál után mindenfelé hulladék hevert a földön.
He swept the detritus into a bin.
A szétszórt hulladékot egy kukába söpörte.
Common mistake:
Often confused with detriment (harm) because they look similar; detritus means waste/debris.
Meaning
scattered waste and debris
Collocations
the detritus of everyday life
|the detritus of a party
|clear away the detritus
|sweep up the detritus
|street detritus
|scattered detritus
|detritus on the floor
|left among the detritus
|amid the detritus
|a pile of detritus
Synonyms
debris (More neutral and common for broken pieces and scattered remains.)
|
litter (Emphasizes rubbish thrown or left in public places.)
|
rubbish (General term for waste, especially in British English.)
|
refuse (More formal term for household or municipal waste.)
Antonyms
cleanliness (The state of being clean and free of waste.)
|
order (A tidy, arranged state without scattered mess.)
Themes
daily_life
|environment
|cleaning
Definition
small pieces of rubbish or unwanted stuff left behind.
waste or debris scattered around, especially the small unwanted things left after an activity or over time.
NOUN
C2
TECHNICAL
2
detritusz
C1
Usage pattern:
[detritus] in [ecosystem/place]
In the pond, insects feed on detritus and help recycle nutrients.
A tóban egyes rovarok detritusszal táplálkoznak, és segítik a tápanyagok körforgását.
The forest floor was rich with detritus from fallen leaves and branches.
Az erdő talaja gazdag volt a lehullott levelekből és ágakból származó detrituszban.
Many bottom-dwelling organisms depend on detritus for food.
Learner examples
Dead leaves become detritus.
Az elhalt levelek detritusszá válnak.
Some animals eat detritus.
Egyes állatok detritusszal táplálkoznak.
Common mistake:
In ecology, detritus is natural dead material, not necessarily human rubbish.
Meaning
dead organic matter in nature
Collocations
leaf detritus
|forest detritus
|stream detritus
|detritus accumulation
|detritus feeders
|detritus-based food web
|detritus layer
|break down detritus
|detritus particles
|detritus processing
Synonyms
organic debris (A close synonym that explicitly signals biological material.)
|
leaf litter (Common term for fallen leaves on the forest floor.)
Antonyms
living tissue (Material that is still alive rather than dead and decomposing.)
Themes
nature
|science
|biology
|environment
Definition
dead leaves, tiny pieces of plants, and other natural waste in an ecosystem.
dead plant and animal material, and the small fragments made from it, especially as part of an ecosystem’s nutrient cycle.
NOUN
C2
TECHNICAL
3
Usage pattern:
[detritus] from [rock/source]
The flood spread detritus across the river plain and built up new deposits.
Az árvíz kőzettörmeléket terített szét az ártéren, és új lerakódásokat hozott létre.
Over time, detritus from the cliffs collected at the base as a loose slope.
Idővel a sziklafalról lehulló kőzettörmelék laza törmeléklejtőt alkotott az alján.
The core samples showed alternating layers of fine detritus and clay.
Learner examples
Water carries detritus into the lake.
A víz kőzettörmeléket sodor a tóba.
Common mistake:
In geology, detritus refers to natural rock fragments, not trash.
Meaning
sediment from worn-down rock
Collocations
glacial detritus
|volcanic detritus
|detritus washed downstream
|detritus deposited in the valley
|fine detritus
|coarse detritus
|transport of detritus
|detritus-rich layers
|detritus in the riverbed
|detritus from erosion
Synonyms
sediment (Broader term for material that settles; not always from rock fragments.)
|
alluvium (Sediment deposited by flowing water, often in river plains.)
Antonyms
bedrock (Solid rock in place, not broken into particles.)
Themes
science
|geology
|environment
Definition
small pieces of rock that have broken off and become sediment.
loose particles of rock produced by weathering and erosion and then carried and deposited as sediment.
NOUN
C1
FORMAL
4
maradvány
B2
Usage pattern:
the detritus of [war/relationship/era/culture]
The museum archive is full of the detritus of the city’s industrial past.
A múzeum archívuma tele van a város ipari múltjának maradványaival.
He tried to move on, but the detritus of the breakup was everywhere—messages, photos, and gifts.
Próbált továbblépni, de a szakítás maradványai mindenütt ott voltak: üzenetek, fotók és ajándékok.
The film collects the detritus of pop culture and turns it into satire.
Learner examples
I deleted the detritus of old emails.
Töröltem a régi e-mailek maradványait.
The detritus of the past filled the attic.
A múlt maradványai megtöltötték a padlást.
Common mistake:
Often used figuratively; it does not mean a ‘difficult period’ itself, but what is left behind by it.
Meaning
unwanted remnants of the past
Collocations
the detritus of war
|the detritus of empire
|the detritus of a failed relationship
|cultural detritus
|digital detritus
|political detritus
|the detritus of the past
|amid the detritus of history
|sort through the detritus
|discard the detritus
Synonyms
remnants (Neutral term for what remains; less negative than detritus.)
|
residue (Suggests a trace left behind, sometimes unpleasant or stubborn.)
|
leftovers (More informal and everyday; less literary.)
Antonyms
essence (The most important part, not the scraps left behind.)
|
core (The central or meaningful part rather than the discardable remains.)
Themes
society
|culture
|history
|media
Definition
unimportant or unwanted leftovers from something that happened before.
the leftover and often trivial or unwanted things from a past event, period, or culture.
NOUN
C2
TECHNICAL
5
Usage pattern:
[detritus] in [wound/cavity]
The clinician irrigated the wound to remove detritus and reduce infection risk.
Az orvos átöblítette a sebet, hogy eltávolítsa a szövettörmeléket és csökkentse a fertőzés kockázatát.
Imaging suggested detritus collecting in the sinus cavity.
A képalkotó vizsgálat azt jelezte, hogy szövettörmelék gyűlik össze a melléküregben.
The dressing helped lift detritus from the wound surface.
Common mistake:
This is a medical use; in everyday English, detritus usually means debris or leftovers.
Meaning
dead tissue or waste in medicine
Collocations
necrotic detritus
|remove detritus
|detritus in the wound
|clear detritus
|cellular detritus
|detritus and exudate
|accumulated detritus
|surgical removal of detritus
Synonyms
dead tissue (Plain description; less general than detritus.)
|
debris (Common in medical contexts for fragments in a wound.)
Antonyms
healthy tissue (Living, functioning body tissue rather than dead material.)
Themes
health
|medicine
Definition
dead material that the body needs to clear away.
dead tissue or other unwanted material in or on the body, especially in a wound or bodily cavity.
Grammar
Dictionary form
detritus
IPA
GB/dɪtɹˈaɪtəs/
US/dɪtɹˈaɪtəs/
Syllables & stress
de - trit - us (3 syllables)
Stress on 2nd syllable (trit)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: detritus
- Plural: detritus
Word family
Advanced or less common
detrital
adjective
detritivore
noun
detritivorous
adjective
Expressions
cultural detritus
1/kˈʌlt͡ʃɚəl dɪtɹˈaɪtəs/
fixed phrase
formal
trivial leftovers of culture
unimportant or throwaway things from popular culture.
Examples
- The essay critiques the cultural detritus that floods social media feeds.
- His art turns cultural detritus—old ads and tabloid headlines—into collages.
- They bonded over the cultural detritus of early-2000s reality TV.
Learner examples
- The show is full of cultural detritus.
detritus feeder
1/dɪtɹˈaɪtəs fˈidɚ/
fixed phrase
technical
animal that eats detritus
an animal that eats dead natural material.
Examples
- Many worms and insects act as detritus feeders in soil.
- The study measured how quickly each detritus feeder processed leaf fragments.
- Detritus feeders are essential to nutrient cycling in wetlands.
detritus layer
1/dɪtɹˈaɪtəs lˈeɪɚ/
fixed phrase
technical
layer of dead organic material
a layer made of dead natural material.
Examples
- A thick detritus layer covered the pond bottom.
- The larvae hide in the detritus layer to avoid predators.
- Sampling focused on organisms living within the detritus layer.
the detritus of [something]
1/ðə dɪtɹˈaɪtəs əv sˈʌmθɪŋ/
fixed phrase
formal
leftover debris from something
the rubbish or leftovers from something.
Examples
- The hallway was full of the detritus of the party.
- The book examines the detritus of empire left behind in the capital.
- They cleaned up the detritus of construction before reopening the shop.
Learner examples
- I threw away the detritus of the picnic.