kinetic sand

noun

Sand coated with polydimethylsiloxane so that it never dries out, used as a plaything for its unusual physical properties.

Meanings

nounkinetic sand (uncountable)
  1. uncountableSand coated with polydimethylsiloxane so that it never dries out, used as a plaything for its unusual physical properties.

    He knew he'd be vacuuming up grains of kinetic sand for weeks, and Mocha and Java would both manage to get it stuck in their fur. But he'd just bought himself the quiet he needed to make his call.

    2019, Melissa F. Miller, In Absentia
    1 more example

    Ava, a 1st grade teacher, chose to send individual bags of kinetic sand for students to build their sandcastles at home. She noted that this method still allowed them to engage in hands-on learning, even at a distance.

    2021, Margaret L. Niess, Henry Gillow-Wiles, Handbook of Research on Transforming Teachers’ Online Pedagogical Reasoning for Engaging K-12 Students in Virtual Learning, page 367

Origin

Introduced as a trademark by the Spin Master company.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

kinetic sand. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kinetic%20sand

MLA

“kinetic sand.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kinetic%20sand. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kinetic sand,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kinetic%20sand.

Source: kinetic sand on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.