as in abandoned
left unoccupied or unused
we had the deserted beach all to ourselves
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in rejected
to leave (a cause or party) often in order to take up another
the volunteer became disillusioned with his candidate and deserted to a political rival
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in left
to cause to remain behind
deserted the kids at the food court for some independent shopping
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of deserted
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 8 Mar. 2026
The film is an adaptation of the ghost novel of the same name, which follows a married couple who travel to Europe to adopt a baby and stay in a deserted hotel filled with eccentric characters.
—Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 28 Feb. 2026
An overnight stakeout on a deserted winter beach, a mystery creature ripping line for close to an hour, an angler refusing to quit, and then the moment a drone rises over the water and delivers the answer.
—Ryan Brennan, Kansas City Star, 25 Feb. 2026
From Gurnee to North Chicago, there are a lot of positives in this nascent new year, including the positive reuse of deserted properties.
—Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
The bears invaded our deserted camp again before dark.
—Doris Decleene, Outdoor Life, 25 Feb. 2026
At noon, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani lifted a ban on all nonessential travel that had left the city's normally busy streets virtually deserted during the worst of the snowfall.
—Sarah Lynch Baldwin, CBS News, 23 Feb. 2026
Streets are very deserted compared to usual.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 23 Feb. 2026
The silence of a muted video, of a deserted street.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Jon Gambrell, Chicago Tribune, 2 Mar. 2026
Within minutes, the square was deserted.
—Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 2 Mar. 2026
Tehran’s streets have been largely deserted with people sheltering during airstrikes.
—Jon Gambrell, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2026
In Tehran on Sunday, the streets were largely deserted as people sheltered during heavy airstrikes, witnesses told The Associated Press, speaking anonymously for fear of retribution.
—Brian Melley, Austin American Statesman, 1 Mar. 2026
The streets were largely deserted as people sheltered during heavy airstrikes, witnesses told The Associated Press.
—Dallas Morning News, 1 Mar. 2026
A day after the violence broke out, streets are deserted Monday as locals and tourists heed remain-in-place orders.
—Suzanne Gamboa, NBC news, 23 Feb. 2026
As Black voters deserted Republicans, the segregationist George Wallace proved with his ’68 presidential run that white southerners were up for grabs.
—Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 23 Feb. 2026
The venue compound was largely deserted after three days of large crowds at the event.
—Aditya Soni, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
In Send Help, now in theaters, Linda (Rachel McAdams) and her overbearing boss Bradley (Dylan O’Brien) survive a plane crash and become stranded on a deserted island, where their past office grievances become a violent fight for survival.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 8 Mar. 2026
The film is an adaptation of the ghost novel of the same name, which follows a married couple who travel to Europe to adopt a baby and stay in a deserted hotel filled with eccentric characters.
—Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 28 Feb. 2026
An overnight stakeout on a deserted winter beach, a mystery creature ripping line for close to an hour, an angler refusing to quit, and then the moment a drone rises over the water and delivers the answer.
—Ryan Brennan, Kansas City Star, 25 Feb. 2026
From Gurnee to North Chicago, there are a lot of positives in this nascent new year, including the positive reuse of deserted properties.
—Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
The bears invaded our deserted camp again before dark.
—Doris Decleene, Outdoor Life, 25 Feb. 2026
At noon, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani lifted a ban on all nonessential travel that had left the city's normally busy streets virtually deserted during the worst of the snowfall.
—Sarah Lynch Baldwin, CBS News, 23 Feb. 2026
Streets are very deserted compared to usual.
—Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 23 Feb. 2026
The silence of a muted video, of a deserted street.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
Tehran’s streets are deserted Tehran’s streets have been largely deserted with people sheltering during airstrikes.
—Jon Gambrell, Chicago Tribune, 2 Mar. 2026
Within minutes, the square was deserted.
—Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 2 Mar. 2026
Tehran’s streets have been largely deserted with people sheltering during airstrikes.
—Jon Gambrell, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2026
In Tehran on Sunday, the streets were largely deserted as people sheltered during heavy airstrikes, witnesses told The Associated Press, speaking anonymously for fear of retribution.
—Brian Melley, Austin American Statesman, 1 Mar. 2026
The streets were largely deserted as people sheltered during heavy airstrikes, witnesses told The Associated Press.
—Dallas Morning News, 1 Mar. 2026
A day after the violence broke out, streets are deserted Monday as locals and tourists heed remain-in-place orders.
—Suzanne Gamboa, NBC news, 23 Feb. 2026
As Black voters deserted Republicans, the segregationist George Wallace proved with his ’68 presidential run that white southerners were up for grabs.
—Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 23 Feb. 2026
The venue compound was largely deserted after three days of large crowds at the event.
—Aditya Soni, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deserted
Adjective
-
The abandoned Westminster Mall has turned into a hotspot for vandalism since shuttering in late 2025, according to police who are attempting to raise awareness about the issue.—
Lesley Marin,
CBS News,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Rogers is shopworker Polly Parrish, who gets mistakenly identified as the parent of an abandoned baby.—
Gwen Ihnat,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
But courts have also rejected O’Connell’s claims of misconduct in other high-profile cases.—
Tony Plohetski,
Austin American Statesman,
19 Mar. 2026
-
The proposal had been rejected by members of a separate federal coin committee — and panned by former member Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.—
Dan Diamond,
Washington Post,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Under former Mayor Eric Kellogg, the city lost millions on a scheme to rehabilitate a disused hotel.—
Evy Lewis,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Understanding that Mandela’s liberation meant that white-minority rule was coming to an end, the founders trekked into the desert, bought a disused mining town wholesale, and established a colony.—
Eve Fairbanks,
The Dial,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The award-winning film depicts the crisis among refugees who were stranded on the Belarus-Poland border.—
Marta Balaga,
Variety,
19 Mar. 2026
-
The United Nations has proposed a safety corridor in order to evacuate some 20,000 seafarers stranded aboard ships in the Persian Gulf.—
Raf Sanchez,
NBC news,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
His work can be gritty, like an act of discovery, as his camera pops in and out of shadows, through desolate, post-apocalyptic shops and office buildings.—
Heide Janssen,
Oc Register,
15 Mar. 2026
-
At the southernmost tip of South America lies a 400,000-acre wilderness once considered too desolate to survive.—
Mark Johanson,
Outside,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Rookie guard Max Shulga and veteran big man Charles Bassey played the final two minutes, with Bassey — who signed a 10-day contract on Sunday to fill a vacant roster spot — scoring his first two points in a Celtics uniform.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Some dens were built near homes and buildings, but those houses were most often vacant and the buildings were abandoned.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
When Ken Fulk and Kurt Wootton purchased what would become Durham Ranch—named after one of their dogs—the California wine country property was in disrepair, with a derelict 1940s ranch house and a handful of rickety outbuildings.—
Mark David,
Robb Report,
17 Mar. 2026
-
This stretch of the park, an object of fascination for Urbano, contains an array of a hundred or so different models of public gaslights, now obsolete and semi-derelict.—
Javier Montes,
Artforum,
1 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
New York defended its vacated cage effectively for the entire time, but scored just once off a brilliant setup by Matthew Schaefer for Heineman’s deflection.—
Andrew Knoll,
Daily News,
6 Mar. 2026
-
And moving chains can take months or even years to bring vacated units onto the market, especially when sales are involved.—
Henry Grabar,
The Atlantic,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Deserted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deserted. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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