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
Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 5 Apr. 2026
For an additional charge, catamaran rentals, scuba diving, and visits to deserted islands can be arranged.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Mar. 2026
Alberto Rodríguez, 73, limped with a cane down a deserted industrial street.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2026
In his seventh feature collaboration with Scorsese, DiCaprio will join forces with Jennifer Lawrence, with the two playing a couple stranded in a deserted, snowy European town.
—Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 16 Mar. 2026
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
Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
But that scoring has deserted them at an inopportune time.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 5 Apr. 2026
Bored with his tedious job, flattened by a wife (Phoebe Cates) who has cavalierly deserted him, the spry little guy is feeling the punches.
—Duane Byrge, HollywoodReporter, 1 Apr. 2026
In the harsh afternoon sun, it was deserted except for dogs dozing on the rocks, and lovers seeking a shred of privacy.
—Taran Khan, The Dial, 24 Mar. 2026
The play area was deserted except for two brothers.
—Jenisha Watts, The Atlantic, 23 Mar. 2026
Upon recognizing that the American policies toward Filipinos were very similar to the racially violent policies targeting African Americans, a lot of these Black soldiers deserted the American ranks and joined up with the Filipino fighters during the Philippine-American War.
—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 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
Adjective
Activities include seeing the filming locations of Cast Away, which follows Hanks as a FedEx analyst who becomes stranded on a deserted island after his plane crashes, as well as a experiencing captain’s dinner.
—Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 5 Apr. 2026
For an additional charge, catamaran rentals, scuba diving, and visits to deserted islands can be arranged.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Mar. 2026
Alberto Rodríguez, 73, limped with a cane down a deserted industrial street.
—Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2026
In his seventh feature collaboration with Scorsese, DiCaprio will join forces with Jennifer Lawrence, with the two playing a couple stranded in a deserted, snowy European town.
—Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 16 Mar. 2026
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
Verb
For 80 years the lighthouse sat deserted.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
But that scoring has deserted them at an inopportune time.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 5 Apr. 2026
Bored with his tedious job, flattened by a wife (Phoebe Cates) who has cavalierly deserted him, the spry little guy is feeling the punches.
—Duane Byrge, HollywoodReporter, 1 Apr. 2026
In the harsh afternoon sun, it was deserted except for dogs dozing on the rocks, and lovers seeking a shred of privacy.
—Taran Khan, The Dial, 24 Mar. 2026
The play area was deserted except for two brothers.
—Jenisha Watts, The Atlantic, 23 Mar. 2026
Upon recognizing that the American policies toward Filipinos were very similar to the racially violent policies targeting African Americans, a lot of these Black soldiers deserted the American ranks and joined up with the Filipino fighters during the Philippine-American War.
—Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deserted
Adjective
-
The city has been overwhelmed in recent years by an influx of abandoned and stray dogs and puppies.—
Alyce McFadden,
San Francisco Chronicle,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Antonia Noori Farzan The Providence Police Department is urging drivers to stay off the road, saying that stuck and abandoned cars are causing problems and preventing the city from getting back to normal.—
Eryn Dion,
The Providence Journal,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The government has rejected calls to give bereaved families more time to pay.—
Marc Shoffman,
TheWeek,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The government rejected any restrictions, citing national security.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
9 Apr. 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
-
After weeks of haggling with authorities, Rex Pereira secured three emergency visas to leave the oil tanker where he had been stranded for over a month.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The murderer, on a road trip from Iowa, had been stranded in Wayne County after hitting an elk and totaling his truck.—
Stephen Trimble,
Denver Post,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The field, a desolate oil patch, will eventually be the central location for what became known as the Texas Killing Fields.—
John Wayne Ferguson,
Houston Chronicle,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Miller and Cook were two of four young women whose bodies were found between 1984 and 1991 in a rural field off a desolate dirt road in League City, located about 28 miles (45 kilometers) southeast of Houston.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Metropolitan Council Environmental Services owns vacant land that likely will remain undeveloped for the foreseeable future.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The jail has not been used to hold anyone since the 1980s and has been vacant since 2008.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 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 12 Apr. 2026.
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