Synonyms of barren

barren 1 of 2

adjective

ˈber-ən 

1

as in desolate

producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation

if tobacco fields aren't allowed to lie idle once every few years, they will become barren

Synonyms & Similar Words

• desolate
• impoverished
• bleak
• poor
• waste
• unfertile
• infertile
• unproductive
• bony
• hardscrabble
• stark
• desert
• dry
• lifeless
• inhospitable
• dead
• thirsty
• drained
• arid
• uncultivable
• depleted
• exhausted
• consumed
• reduced
• diminished
• debilitated
• spent
• droughty
• sere
• waterless
• rainless
• untillable
• enfeebled
• parched
• sunbaked
• dried-up
• expended
• lessened
• dehydrated
• baked
• bankrupted
• used up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fertile
• rich
• productive
• fruitful
• lush
• luxuriant
• arable
• green
• tillable
• verdant
• sylvan

2

as in sterile

not able to produce fruit or offspring

the pear tree appears to be barren

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sterile
• unfruitful
• sterilized
• altered
• infertile
• fruitless
• impotent
• emasculated
• neutered
• unproductive
• castrated
• desexed
• spayed
• gelded

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fertile
• fruitful
• productive
• fat
• rich
• prolific
• luxuriant
• pregnant
• fecund
• enriched
• potent
• impregnated
• bearing
• producing
• fertilized
• bursting
• yielding
• flourishing
• blooming
• teeming
• swarming

3

as in unsuccessful

producing no results

that line of investigation proved barren, so the police tried other avenues

Synonyms & Similar Words

• unsuccessful
• futile
• useless
• unprofitable
• unproductive
• fruitless
• ineffective
• in vain
• ineffectual
• unavailing
• empty
• vain
• abortive
• worthless
• impossible
• insufficient
• of no avail
• profitless
• hollow
• inadequate
• meaningless
• bootless
• not worth the candle
• valueless
• inefficacious
• otiose
• no dice
• pointless
• lost
• hopeless
• idle
• lacking
• unattainable
• counterproductive
• wanting
• no-win

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• successful
• effective
• efficient
• fruitful
• profitable
• productive
• virtuous
• deadly
• potent
• meaningful
• worthwhile
• adequate
• sufficient
• effectual
• efficacious
• practical
• feasible
• functional
• applicable
• usable
• workable
• practicable
• realizable

4

as in devoid

utterly lacking in something needed, wanted, or expected

their proposal for revitalizing the downtown business district is utterly barren of useful ideas

Synonyms & Similar Words

• devoid
• void
• empty
• bankrupt
• destitute
• bereft
• bare
• blank
• vacant
• insufficient
• incomplete
• deficient
• fragmentary
• stark
• absent
• partial
• wanting
• short
• fragmental
• innocent
• missing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fraught
• filled
• full
• rife
• replete
• flush
• provided
• crowded
• furnished
• saturated
• supplied
• bursting
• fat
• brimming
• packed
• loaded
• stuffed
• thick
• crammed
• bulging
• chock-full
• jammed
• teeming
• swarming
• jam-packed
• abounding
• thronging

barren

2 of 2

noun

as in desert

land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops

lived out in the barrens where it was impossible to grow anything

Synonyms & Similar Words

• desert
• wasteland
• wilderness
• desolation
• heath
• waste
• bush
• no-man's-land
• wild
• badland
• brush
• open
• dust bowl
• open air
• outdoors
• out-of-doors
• nature

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective barren differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of barren are bald, bare, naked, and nude. While all these words mean "deprived of naturally or conventionally appropriate covering," barren often suggests aridity or impoverishment or sterility.

barren plains

When can bald be used instead of barren?

The synonyms bald and barren are sometimes interchangeable, but bald implies actual or seeming absence of natural covering and may suggest a conspicuous bareness.

a bald mountain peak

When might bare be a better fit than barren?

The words bare and barren are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, bare implies the removal of what is additional, superfluous, ornamental, or dispensable.

an apartment with bare walls

When could naked be used to replace barren?

While in some cases nearly identical to barren, naked suggests absence of protective or ornamental covering but may imply a state of nature, of destitution, or of defenselessness.

poor half-naked children

Where would nude be a reasonable alternative to barren?

The words nude and barren can be used in similar contexts, but nude applies especially to the unclothed human figure.

a nude model posing for art students

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of barren

Adjective

Over two years, these top spenders expanded their overall staff by 10% and boosted entry-level hiring by 12%, defying other reports that college graduates face a barren job market. — Sebastian Herrera, Fortune, 8 Aug. 2026

John Mozeliak just had the best day by an Angels front-office member in about a decade, replenishing a barren farm system with nine prospects after a handful of trades. — Levi Weaver, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026

Plenty of my friends worked there loading clays; nothing like working in a box in the middle of August, with the sun beating down on a barren landscape, just make gas money and some Friday night jingle. — Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Sprawling acres of largely barren farmland, still owned by the sugarcane plantations that dominated the islands’ economy for a century, line the side of the highway here, gently sloping toward the craggy green cliffs of the Waimea Canyon. — Guthrie Scrimgeour, Rolling Stone, 2 Aug. 2026