1
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
a desolate house abandoned many years ago
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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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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
Beth D'addono, Southern Living, 28 Aug. 2025
The 2024 wildfire that burned 89,000 acres (36,000 hectares) of the Canadian Rockies resort town of Jasper was tragic and has left a desolate landscape in some areas.
—Jamie Carter, Space.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Through telescopes, ever improving technologically, Mars’s surface revealed itself to have exotic stretches of desolate, red-ocher terrain and more familiar-looking polar ice caps.
—David Kamp, Air Mail, 23 Aug. 2025
While on horseback, federal agents protect desolate, challenging stretches of territory that vehicles can’t traverse.
—Suzanne Wright, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desolate
Adjective
Restaurants provided a beacon of hope at a time when the landscape was desolate.
—Beth D'addono, Southern Living, 28 Aug. 2025
The 2024 wildfire that burned 89,000 acres (36,000 hectares) of the Canadian Rockies resort town of Jasper was tragic and has left a desolate landscape in some areas.
—Jamie Carter, Space.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Through telescopes, ever improving technologically, Mars’s surface revealed itself to have exotic stretches of desolate, red-ocher terrain and more familiar-looking polar ice caps.
—David Kamp, Air Mail, 23 Aug. 2025
While on horseback, federal agents protect desolate, challenging stretches of territory that vehicles can’t traverse.
—Suzanne Wright, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desolate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desolate
Adjective
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Matters only got more bleak in the sixth, when Rushing fouled a ball off his right shin, smoking a ball right above where his guard ended and immediately going down in pain.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
-
The one constant is the unhappy couple’s bleak surroundings.—
Adam Solomons,
IndieWire,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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His work in those early days bears little resemblance to the crystalline large-format portraits of lonely American landscapes that would come to define his career.—
Chris Wiley,
New Yorker,
9 Sep. 2025
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Quarterback is an isolating and lonely position, despite entire infrastructures reverse-engineered in service of those who play it, to say nothing of the elaborate playbooks created for them.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Days are spent fishing, snorkeling, and picnicking on deserted Indian Ocean islands, while nights are spent sleeping under the stars.—
Ian Proctor,
Travel + Leisure,
6 Sep. 2025
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Co-starring Rachel McAdams, the tonal mashup chronicles two incompatible work colleagues who crash land on a deserted island and have to find a way to work together for the sake of survival.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The local Rite Aid was getting ready to shut down, with barren shelves and 75% off all items, while commerce elsewhere in the town of less than 3,000 people wasn’t exactly bustling.—
David Mark,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
-
While flying a shuttlecraft, she gets sucked into a wormhole and crashes onto a barren moon.—
Adam B. Vary,
Variety,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
10 Sep. 2025
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Our family has been ruined by Denise's lies of promising to end a year-long affair.—
Stephanie Wenger,
PEOPLE,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Interestingly, Lorraine has taught Judy to ward off her frightening visions by using a nursery rhyme, effectively teaching her to suppress her dark side.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
The Dolphins wear white jerseys at home for afternoon games, forcing opponents to wear darker colors that absorb more heat.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This edition’s commissions have taken over some of the town’s most striking and unusual locations, including a church built for the fishing community, a former customs house, a Martello Tower and a disused railway bridge.—
Joanne Shurvell,
Forbes.com,
26 Aug. 2025
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On his release, Stern went on to spend the 1950s ping-ponging between New York and California, for a time living on a disused laundry barge in Sausalito.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
3 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Shooting scenes in wide or medium shots that sometimes break into Hsiao-Lee’s harrowing point-of-view, cinematographer Yu Jing-Pin depicts a world without much color or hope, while sets by Huang Mei-Ching and Tu Shuo-Feng emphasize a sad and impoverished existence.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Sep. 2025
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Each serves a high rate of students from impoverished households, and families within the schools' boundaries can choose to attend those schools or receive a bus to a second school option based on their address.—
Krista Johnson,
Louisville Courier Journal,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desolate. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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