jettison

1 of 2

verb

jet·​ti·​son ˈje-tə-sən How to pronounce jettison (audio)
-zən
jettisoned; jettisoning; jettisons

transitive verb

1
: to get rid of as superfluous or encumbering : omit or forgo as part of a plan or as the result of some other decision
must be prepared to jettison many romantic notionsChristopher Catling
2
: to drop (cargo) to lighten a ship's load in time of distress
3
: to drop from an aircraft or spacecraft in flight
jettisonable adjective

jettison

2 of 2

noun

: a voluntary sacrifice of cargo to lighten a ship's load in time of distress

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The Origin of Jettison

Jettison comes from Anglo-French geteson, which means literally "action of throwing" and is related to the Latin verb jactare, meaning "to throw." The noun jettison refers to a voluntary sacrifice of cargo to lighten a ship's load in time of distress, and it is the source of the word jetsam (the name for goods "jettisoned"); the word is often paired with flotsam ("floating wreckage"). These days you don't have to be on a sinking ship to "jettison" something: the verb also means simply "to get rid of."

Examples of jettison in a Sentence

Verb The captain gave orders to jettison the cargo. They jettisoned the fuel and made an emergency landing. We should jettison these old computers and get new ones. They jettisoned plans for a vacation. Noun with his ship rapidly sinking, the captain ordered a last-ditch jettison of much of its cargo
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
One potential conclusion was that Chinese traditions were antiquated and had to be jettisoned in favor of Western ideas, including nationalism and Marxism. Rana Mitter, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 Bill Clinton, who had long since jettisoned his campaign rhetoric about the butchers of Beijing, was eager to integrate China into the global economy. Christian Schneider, National Review, 21 Dec. 2023 But negotiators have jettisoned most of those proposals, the people familiar with the talks said, because many were too inflammatory to garner support from House Democrats. Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, 24 Feb. 2024 Five or 10 years from now, Harrison said, if some alternative means of emergency communication comes along, carmakers might finally jettison AM radio. Jacob Stern, The Atlantic, 21 Feb. 2024 Ominously, in late 2022, throughout 2023 and so far in the early stages of 2024, tech companies have jettisoned workers and shed office space in a quest for greater efficiency. George Avalos, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2024 Turkey has jettisoned any desire to join the West, and the United States must recognize that its multialignment is here to stay. Soner Cagaptay, Foreign Affairs, 19 Feb. 2024 Senators previously jettisoned an earlier version of the bill that also included immigration reforms and border security measures, but the bill successfully moved forward when those provisions were dropped. Alison Durkee, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024 Parts of two or three propane tanks jettisoned 50 feet away. Rosalio Ahumada, Sacramento Bee, 10 Feb. 2024
Noun
But the fact is that Silicon Valley investors are often prepared to jettison founders if they are felt not to have the skills to move beyond running a start-up to heading a much larger and more complicated entity. Roger Trapp, Forbes, 28 Nov. 2023 Hot staging comes two seconds later with the simultaneous ignition of the Starship upper stage and jettison of the Super Heavy booster. Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 8 Nov. 2023 Sarafin ticked off all of the launch accomplishments including all of the separation events for the rocket including the boosters, fairings, jettison of the launch abort system, shutdown the four RS-25 engines and jettison of the core stage. Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 17 Nov. 2022 There’s physical freedom and authenticity: Charlotte jettisons shapewear and lets her belly hang out in an adorable new dress. Vicki Shabo, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Aug. 2023 And there are the older restaurant’s original chairs, which designer Becky Carter decided to restore rather than jettison for newer pieces. Bebe Howorth, ELLE Decor, 31 July 2023 Hire back your engineers, focus on what works and jettison what doesn’t. Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2023 But the deal jettisons many top conservative priorities contained in a bill passed by the House last month: deeper spending cuts, elimination of billions in funding for new IRS agents and a rollback of green energy incentives intended to tackle climate change. Joseph Morton, Dallas News, 30 May 2023 The book written by David Thompson with Sharon Washington maintains the film’s immediate post-World War II jubilance but jettisons much of the plot that was specific to De Niro and Minnelli. Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jettison.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English jetteson, from Anglo-French geteson, literally, action of throwing, from Latin jactation-, jactatio, from jactare — more at jet

First Known Use

Verb

1848, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of jettison was in the 15th century

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Dictionary Entries Near jettison

Cite this Entry

“Jettison.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jettison. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

jettison

verb
jet·​ti·​son
ˈjet-ə-sən,
-ə-zən
1
: to throw goods overboard from a ship or aircraft especially to lighten it in distress
2
jettison noun

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