1
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
a desolate house abandoned many years ago
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lonely
sad from lack of companionship or separation from others
he was less desolate after adopting a rescue dog
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3
as in deserted
left unoccupied or unused
a desolate mining town that had its brief heyday more than a century ago
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4
as in barren
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
wild, desolate plains on which only the hardiest could survive
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to ruin
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of
totally desolated the city with aerial bombs
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of desolate
Kate Wong, Scientific American, 16 Sep. 2025
The lock screen on the Mac remains a desolate place, relative to the same area in both iOS and iPadOS—this is still a no-notifications, no-widgets zone that exists only to keep your Mac locked.
—ArsTechnica, 15 Sep. 2025
While the rest of Burning Man celebrated, Kruglov lay prostrate on the ground at a faraway campsite in a comparatively desolate section of Black Rock City, his throat slashed, as a puddle of blood congealed around his lifeless body.
—Denver Nicks, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2025
Silksong is steeped in religious imagery — desolate chapels, ringing church bells, even rosary beads that act as in-game currency.
—Keller Gordon, NPR, 8 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desolate
Adjective
The coastal floodplain that was desolate throughout the long winter is now lush with plant life and buzzing with insects.
—Kate Wong, Scientific American, 16 Sep. 2025
The lock screen on the Mac remains a desolate place, relative to the same area in both iOS and iPadOS—this is still a no-notifications, no-widgets zone that exists only to keep your Mac locked.
—ArsTechnica, 15 Sep. 2025
While the rest of Burning Man celebrated, Kruglov lay prostrate on the ground at a faraway campsite in a comparatively desolate section of Black Rock City, his throat slashed, as a puddle of blood congealed around his lifeless body.
—Denver Nicks, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2025
Silksong is steeped in religious imagery — desolate chapels, ringing church bells, even rosary beads that act as in-game currency.
—Keller Gordon, NPR, 8 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desolate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desolate
Adjective
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When everything looks bleak, a woman holds it up victoriously.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
6 Nov. 2025
-
New York — US stocks closed lower Thursday as concerns mounted about expensive tech stocks, and a risk-off sentiment spread through markets after new data showed a bleak outlook for the job market.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The touching dramedy centers on a lonely American actor (Brendan Fraser) who, after seven years living in Tokyo, still feels like an outsider.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
4 Nov. 2025
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Phantom Son will center on Ronnie, a young and struggling runaway taken in by Audrey (Zellweger), a lonely woman whose own son was kidnapped twenty years earlier.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Vargas nodded at the nearly deserted river.—
Daniel Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
29 Oct. 2025
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The streets below looked deserted.—
Simon Shuster,
Time,
23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The barren Martian landscape stretches as far as the eye can see, interrupted only occasionally by the faintest of tire tracks marking the unpaved road on Libya’s north-south route.—
Mick Krever,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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In the wild, macaques can traverse miles of novel terrain each week and socialize through grooming, but in many laboratories they are isolated in barren cages no bigger than a washing machine.—
Ava Kofman,
New Yorker,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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That’s why his mistress threw in with Frank to intimidate Dale into a land deal that would have ruined any chance of Chutto’s family ever getting their land back.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
5 Nov. 2025
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Because when those premiums go up by 100, 200%, people’s lives are ruined.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
3 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos were looked at by many across the NFL as a dark-horse Super Bowl contender before the season started.—
Mark Kern,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
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Sor Juana’s verses confirm that venturing into the dating pool is always like stepping into a dark abyss.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Then over time, a few enterprising communities and entrepreneurs looked for ways to turn disused asylums into something productive, Rondinone said, something that could bring jobs and revenue back once again.—
Jen Rose Smith,
CNN Money,
14 Oct. 2025
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The piece is a collection of disused shoemaker boxes, once used by cobblers to keep tools, pressed against each other and stacked up, clambering toward the ceiling.—
Edna Bonhomme,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The film, which world premiered in the Berlinale’s Perspectives sidebar, follows an impoverished but determined family put to test when the father, who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, is accused of murder.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
23 Oct. 2025
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Sanctions have crippled the government’s primary source of revenue, oil exports, limiting the state’s ability to provide for millions of impoverished Iranians through social safety nets.—
Leila Gharagozlou,
CNN Money,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desolate. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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