jetsam

/ˈd͡ʒɛt.səm/

//ˈd͡ʒɛt.səm// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"jetsam" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“jetsam” is uncommon English (frequency #86,405 among 796 “J” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#86,405
frequency rank, English
796
“J” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Items thrown overboard from a ship or boat in distress in order to lighten its load.

Corpus desk

Index EN-jetsam · jetsam · English

jetsam · rank #86,405 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #86,405
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 796
  • PHOTO-FINISH Jeannine

Nearest frequency peer: Jeannine (-3 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “jetsam”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “jetsam” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for jetsam
PropertyValue
Headwordjetsam
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈd͡ʒɛt.səm/
Letters6
Frequency rank#86,405
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “jetsam” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).jetsamfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Jeannine” (#86,402), “Jaworski” (#86,400), “Jowett” (#86,410). Among 796 “J” headwords, “jetsam” is #86,405. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

jetsam is uncommon English at frequency #86,405 among 796 “J” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈd͡ʒɛt.səm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for jetsam, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English jetteson, from Anglo-Norman getteson. Doublet of jettison. The correct English form is jetsam, spelled J-E-T-S-A-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Items thrown overboard from a ship or boat in distress in order to lighten its load.
  2. 2
    Discarded or leftover odds and ends.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how jetsam appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. There she was, floating amongst the jetsam, like so much debris.
  2. They were the jetsam of the dot-com bust.

Etymology

From Middle English jetteson, from Anglo-Norman getteson. Doublet of jettison.

This word in other languages

echazón(Español)lest(Français)Strandgut(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "jetsam"?
"jetsam" is spelled J-E-T-S-A-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈd͡ʒɛt.səm/.
What does "jetsam" mean?
As a noun, "jetsam" means: Items thrown overboard from a ship or boat in distress in order to lighten its load.
How do you pronounce "jetsam"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "jetsam" is /ˈd͡ʒɛt.səm/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "jetsam"?
From Middle English jetteson, from Anglo-Norman getteson. Doublet of jettison. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "jetsam", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Jowett#86,410kantar#86,414Kipnis#86,430klaxon#86,432

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list