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
Edwidge Danticat, New Yorker, 30 Jan. 2026
When their plane crashes, Linda and Bradley find themselves together on a deserted island.
—Julie Hinds, Freep.com, 29 Jan. 2026
The airport was nearly deserted Saturday morning, with only a few TSA agents and a couple of travelers remaining inside the departures side.
—Dallas Morning News, 24 Jan. 2026
Front doors began to open onto building entryways, revealing deserted courtyards inside.
—Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026
The film, directed by Sam Raimi, follows a woman (McAdams) and her sexist boss (O’Brien), who become stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash — where things quickly get dark (and bloody).
—Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 22 Jan. 2026
But then Gu quarantined for a few weeks after the Games in the nearly deserted Olympic village.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 22 Jan. 2026
The movie stars the Oscar nominee as a woman who is stranded on a deserted island with her boss (Dylan O'Brien, who was also in attendance at the ceremony) and forced to keep them both alive after a plane crash.
—Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
This saucy British entry gathers a group of young, swinging singles with a knack for short, sweet relationships and throws them on a deserted island for a month.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Jan. 2026
Arkansas Online, 24 Jan. 2026
Cillian Murphy starred in the inaugural film of the series, 28 Days Later (2002), as Jim, who wakes up from a coma to find a once-bustling London deserted amidst a Rage Virus outbreak that began four weeks earlier.
—Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 16 Jan. 2026
His case was linked to proceedings against the civil association FundaRedes, though relatives and human-rights groups believe the real target was his brother, who had deserted the armed forces two years earlier.
—Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
The streets below were strangely empty for a weekday morning, and Madison Square Park, visible through the scaffolding, was deserted save for a few people and their pets braving the day’s frigid winds at the dog park.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 5 Jan. 2026
With such a prosperous and advanced village before them, well before its time, archaeologists wondered why the site had been deserted.
—Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
Yes, moviegoers have pretty much deserted the cineplex to stay home with streaming.
—Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 7 Dec. 2025
The hillside grotto where Jesus and Mary are said to have rested is open to visitors but on a recent afternoon was deserted – with burned out candles evidence of prayers but not a single visitor.
—Jane Arraf, NPR, 29 Nov. 2025
But in the ring, his mojo deserted him.
—Heather Abbott, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025
Adjective
Displaced families often spend weeks, sometimes months, in makeshift dwellings, including public squares and deserted government buildings, while children lose months or even years of education as schools close or become inaccessible owing to gang activity.
—Edwidge Danticat, New Yorker, 30 Jan. 2026
When their plane crashes, Linda and Bradley find themselves together on a deserted island.
—Julie Hinds, Freep.com, 29 Jan. 2026
The airport was nearly deserted Saturday morning, with only a few TSA agents and a couple of travelers remaining inside the departures side.
—Dallas Morning News, 24 Jan. 2026
Front doors began to open onto building entryways, revealing deserted courtyards inside.
—Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026
The film, directed by Sam Raimi, follows a woman (McAdams) and her sexist boss (O’Brien), who become stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash — where things quickly get dark (and bloody).
—Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 22 Jan. 2026
But then Gu quarantined for a few weeks after the Games in the nearly deserted Olympic village.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 22 Jan. 2026
The movie stars the Oscar nominee as a woman who is stranded on a deserted island with her boss (Dylan O'Brien, who was also in attendance at the ceremony) and forced to keep them both alive after a plane crash.
—Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
This saucy British entry gathers a group of young, swinging singles with a knack for short, sweet relationships and throws them on a deserted island for a month.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Jan. 2026
Verb
Streets of the town were deserted Friday, many homes had their curtains drawn and shops were closed.
—Arkansas Online, 24 Jan. 2026
Cillian Murphy starred in the inaugural film of the series, 28 Days Later (2002), as Jim, who wakes up from a coma to find a once-bustling London deserted amidst a Rage Virus outbreak that began four weeks earlier.
—Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 16 Jan. 2026
His case was linked to proceedings against the civil association FundaRedes, though relatives and human-rights groups believe the real target was his brother, who had deserted the armed forces two years earlier.
—Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
The streets below were strangely empty for a weekday morning, and Madison Square Park, visible through the scaffolding, was deserted save for a few people and their pets braving the day’s frigid winds at the dog park.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 5 Jan. 2026
With such a prosperous and advanced village before them, well before its time, archaeologists wondered why the site had been deserted.
—Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
Yes, moviegoers have pretty much deserted the cineplex to stay home with streaming.
—Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 7 Dec. 2025
The hillside grotto where Jesus and Mary are said to have rested is open to visitors but on a recent afternoon was deserted – with burned out candles evidence of prayers but not a single visitor.
—Jane Arraf, NPR, 29 Nov. 2025
But in the ring, his mojo deserted him.
—Heather Abbott, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025
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
-
More than 300 district judges in Minnesota and elsewhere have so far rejected the government’s mandatory detention policies, ordering detainees released or granted bond hearings.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
6 Feb. 2026
-
That happened recently in Kansas City – where voters rejected a new stadium – and Philadelphia, where the team reversed its decision to build the arena near the city’s Chinatown.—
Gidon Jakar,
The Conversation,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
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
-
The Barnham site lies in a disused clay pit in Suffolk, UK, preserving traces of the period around 427,000 to 415,000 years ago.—
Jay Kakade
December 30,
New Atlas,
30 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
For the second time in days, a driver ignored barricades in Pisgah National Forest and got stranded in the snow, according to officials in western North Carolina.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Keep your fuel tank at least half-full to prevent fuel lines from freezing, and for extra fuel if you get stranded.—
Cailey Gleeson,
jsonline.com,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Gibney illustrates that state of waiting, of staving off what at that time appears to be the inevitable, with the famous sequence from Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal, in which Max von Sydow’s medieval knight plays chess with Death on a desolate beach.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
25 Jan. 2026
-
Tautly written, this first novel by a former criminal lawyer who spent 17 years in the Arctic is a hard look at the desolate lives of people resigned to life in the bleak far north.—
Sandra Dallas,
Denver Post,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
City officials hope to reverse that trend by revitalizing the downtown area, from attracting businesses to vacant storefronts to developing unused city sites, such as the corner lot burdened with the remains of Hotel Marysville, which was destroyed by fire in 2024.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
5 Feb. 2026
-
As the luxury building sat vacant, taggers armed with spray paint flocked there, hoping to leave a colorful mark on the city skyline.—
Iris Kwok,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Tighter oil coordination On January 9, Trump invited several oil executives to pitch proposals for investments in the derelict Venezuelan oil industry.—
Stefano Pozzebon,
CNN Money,
19 Jan. 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
-
African investors have stepped up to take up the vacated space but have yet to match the size of funding rounds during those peak years.—
Alexander Onukwue,
semafor.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Assemblymember James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, announced his run for LaMalfa’s vacated seat, with support from LaMalfa’s widow and family.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Deserted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deserted. Accessed 9 Feb. 2026.
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