Meanings
noungarbage patch (plural garbage patches)
plural garbage patches
- geographyA gyre of marine debris particles caused by the effects of ocean currents and increasing plastic pollution by humans.
A reconnaissance flight taken in a modified C-130 Hercules aircraft found a vast clump of mainly plastic waste at the northern edge of what is known as the “great Pacific garbage patch”, located between Hawaii and California.
2016 October 4, Oliver Milman, “‘Great Pacific garbage patch’ far bigger than imagined, aerial survey shows”, in The Guardian
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 垃圾帶 /垃圾带
- 垃圾帶 /垃圾带 (lājīdài)gyre of marine debris particles
French continent de plastique
- continent de plastiquegyre of marine debris particles
Cite this entry
APA
garbage patch. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/garbage%20patch
MLA
“garbage patch.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/garbage%20patch. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “garbage patch,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/garbage%20patch.
Source: garbage patch on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.