as in abandonment
the act of abandoning
the soldiers were imprisoned for desertion of their posts
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Recent Examples of desertion
Rumours of low morale and high desertion rates have been swirling around for a long time, but Fedorov’s comments mark the first time any Ukrainian official has disclosed the scale of the problem.
—
Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 14 Jan. 2026
The relative desertion of the streets shows the strategy has paid off.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 4 Jan. 2026
And while his troops have continued to prevent a total collapse of the front line, the odds may yet worsen as reports indicate an uptick in desertion rates and military-age males fleeing the country.
—Tom O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025
Mobilization has stalled, with brigades undermanned, and desertion in the ranks is a mounting problem.
—Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desertion
Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 14 Jan. 2026
The relative desertion of the streets shows the strategy has paid off.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 4 Jan. 2026
And while his troops have continued to prevent a total collapse of the front line, the odds may yet worsen as reports indicate an uptick in desertion rates and military-age males fleeing the country.
—Tom O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025
Mobilization has stalled, with brigades undermanned, and desertion in the ranks is a mounting problem.
—Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desertion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desertion
abandonment
Noun
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The woman, whose face was blurred in the video, was booked on charges of animal abandonment and resisting arrest.—
Minyvonne Burke,
NBC news,
19 Feb. 2026
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These were evidenced during England’s European Championship qualifying round game away to Bulgaria in 2019, when officials threatened an abandonment after play was twice stopped due to racist abuse aimed at Tyrone Mings and Raheem Sterling.—
Philip Buckingham,
New York Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Desertion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desertion. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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