A whole bunch of ocean detritus?

Latest answer — October 11, 2026

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Debris and pieces of wood floating on the surface of the sea.

Clue explainedFact checked

The joke is in “lotsa”: say it aloud and it sounds like “lots of,” giving “lots of flotsam,” or a whole bunch of floating debris. Flotsam is wreckage or cargo floating at sea, often contrasted with jetsam, which is deliberately thrown overboard. The clue turns that nautical term into a playful quantity phrase.

Clue type:
Pun or wordplay

NYT Crossword

This clue's Sunday, October 11, 2026 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Easy putt
  2. 6Clever
  3. 11Exam for a future atty.
  4. 15Boulderer's safety item
  5. 18Muffin alternative
  6. 19Sea surrounding Mykonos
  7. 21Flour in Indian cooking
  8. 22"Mr. Blue Sky" band, in brief
  9. 23Some "Star Trek" slang?
  10. 25Infamous Russian mystic
  11. 27Glow up?
  12. 28One might be liquid or frozen
  13. 29Street that might run all the way through town
  14. 31Like most autographs
  15. 32French filmmaker Jacques
  16. 34Secrets known only to E.N.T.s?
  17. 38Depression formed by a volcano's collapse
  18. 41Did a taxing job?
  19. 42C.I.A. forerunner
  20. 43Listened to "Rigoletto" way too many times?
  21. 46Mideast leaders
  22. 48Member of the South Asian diaspora
  23. 49Ocho menos uno
  24. 50Berkeley university, familiarly
  25. 53Rubber stamp go-with
  26. 56Many a David Foster Wallace piece
  27. 58Not gross
  28. 59Wild hogs
  29. 61"___ y plata" (Montana's motto)
  30. 62Sleuth, slangily
  31. 64"A sharp edge recalls a splinter's bite" or "The forest's final revenge is whisper-thin," e.g.?
  32. 69N.K. ___, "Broken Earth" trilogy author
  33. 73Summer in France
  34. 74Person discussed in Article II, Section 1, Clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution
  35. 75Spark joy?
  36. 80Educational inst.
  37. 81"Feast," in Arabic
  38. 82Count (up)
  39. 83Slippery swimmer
  40. 85Daniel ___ (children's TV character)
  41. 89"The heart of the internet," per its tagline
  42. 91Handful
  43. 93Those opposed
  44. 95Animated explorer
  45. 96Cornea-reshaping surgery
  46. 98Diwali or Holi?
  47. 101Queen ___ (pop nickname)
  48. 102Bouncing
  49. 105Some hair products
  50. 106Like the world's worst demolition company?
  51. 110Rose bowl?
  52. 111Status after a leadoff walk
  53. 112Drubbing
  54. 113Wibbly-wobbly
  55. 115Hot stone massage location
  56. 118Take a risk
  57. 120A whole bunch of ocean detritus?
  58. 124Tsp. or tbsp.
  59. 125Triumphal monument shape
  60. 126Off-target
  61. 127Family girl
  62. 128Fleur-de-___
  63. 129Luxury goods retailer since 1867
  64. 130Needlessly adorns, in an idiom
  65. 131Massachusetts county in which the term "gerrymandering" was first applied

Down

  1. 1Disapproving sounds
  2. 2"Dissent is patriotic" grp.
  3. 3Anti-matter?
  4. 4Overnight stop
  5. 5Made irrelevant
  6. 6___ serif
  7. 7Free-for-all
  8. 8Stress-induced discomfort
  9. 9Stimpy's TV partner
  10. 10Make it?
  11. 11Roundup rope
  12. 12Comics legend behind the Fantastic Four
  13. 13Calls out on social media, slangily
  14. 14Odd-toed ungulate
  15. 15Document used for a travel companion who might sit under a seat
  16. 16Many characters in Pixar's "Elio"
  17. 17"The Bear" matriarch played by Jamie Lee Curtis
  18. 20Rootless
  19. 24Green Egyptian god
  20. 26Get into, as a cab, say
  21. 30DiFranco who made her Broadway debut in "Hadestown"
  22. 33Northernmost arm of the Mediterranean
  23. 35Like a blue moon or blue steak
  24. 36Something to chew on
  25. 37Ship brass
  26. 38Work with Python, say
  27. 39Park and Fifth, e.g.: Abbr.
  28. 40Tennis score following deuce
  29. 44Second-in-command
  30. 45___ Place, female companion of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
  31. 47Closely examine
  32. 51"Dancing With the Stars" network
  33. 52Cardinals legend Brock
  34. 54With the bow, in music
  35. 55Sullen
  36. 57"Indeed!"
  37. 60Performed exceptionally, in slang
  38. 63Bibliography listing
  39. 65Louvre Pyramid architect
  40. 66Mail Boxes ___
  41. 67Chain that sells climbing gear
  42. 68Only egg-laying mammals besides platypuses
  43. 69Mocking cry
  44. 70"Night" memoirist Wiesel
  45. 71They might be the last to be booked on an airplane
  46. 72Grp. for Commanders and Chiefs
  47. 76Holiday classic starring Will Ferrell
  48. 77Soapmaker's supply
  49. 78Be inclined
  50. 79Cryptid with a Tibetan name
  51. 84Speech therapist's target
  52. 86Frigg and Freyja, e.g.
  53. 87One of the Great Lakes
  54. 88Cleaning cloths
  55. 90Home of the N.C.A.A.'s Flyers
  56. 92Train sound
  57. 93Home services website
  58. 94Dig up dirt, say
  59. 97"Barry Lyndon" director
  60. 99QB's worry: Abbr.
  61. 100Statement by someone who's out of date?
  62. 101Vietnamese sandwich
  63. 103Animals known for their slow metabolism
  64. 104Capital of ancient Troy?
  65. 106Alternative to express
  66. 107Ancient Andeans
  67. 108Like some allergy sprays
  68. 109Splendid
  69. 114Young newts
  70. 116A runner may need to pick it up
  71. 117Charger's option, informally
  72. 119Flop ___ (period of failure)
  73. 121Part of NGO: Abbr.
  74. 122Prefix with cycle
  75. 123Christmas carol contraction

The answer to “A whole bunch of ocean detritus?” in the New York Times crossword is LOTSAFLOTSAM — a 12-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on October 11, 2026, a Sunday puzzle, at 120-Across. Below you'll find why that fill fits, every other answer we've recorded for this clue, and links into the puzzle it came from.

“A whole bunch of ocean detritus?” answer

LOTSAFLOTSAM (12 letters)

Reveal the solution one letter at a time with the tiles above if you'd rather nudge yourself toward it than see the whole word at once. Just want it outright? The answer is LOTSAFLOTSAM.

When else has “A whole bunch of ocean detritus?” appeared?

New York Times reuses clues across dates, sometimes with a different answer depending on the grid. Here's where this exact clue has shown up, and what the answer was each time — handy when you're checking whether today's fill is the only one.

October 11, 2026 (most recent) → LOTSAFLOTSAM. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “A whole bunch of ocean detritus?”?

The answer is LOTSAFLOTSAM, a 12-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on October 11, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “A whole bunch of ocean detritus?”?

12 letters: LOTSAFLOTSAM.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on October 11, 2026 (a Sunday puzzle), at 120-Across.

Can “A whole bunch of ocean detritus?” have a different answer?

Yes — New York Times sometimes reuses a clue with a different solution to fit the grid. The answers we've recorded for each date it appeared are listed above when available.

Where can I find the rest of this day's NYT Crossword answers?

The full grid for October 11, 2026 is on the NYT Crossword answers page, with every clue and answer from that puzzle.

New York Times Crossword is published by The New York Times; WordHint is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher.

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