1
as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
if tobacco fields aren't allowed to lie idle once every few years, they will become barren
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sterile
not able to produce fruit or offspring
the pear tree appears to be barren
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
that line of investigation proved barren, so the police tried other avenues
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in devoid
utterly lacking in something needed, wanted, or expected
their proposal for revitalizing the downtown business district is utterly barren of useful ideas
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in desert
land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops
lived out in the barrens where it was impossible to grow anything
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of barren
Doyle Rice, USA Today, 17 Jan. 2026
The Bruins’ cornucopia of goals from Saturday turned into a barren wasteland of squandered opportunities on Sunday.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026
In the 19th century, guano miners razed the place, removing most of the topsoil and leaving behind barren rock.
—Susan Casey, Travel + Leisure, 10 Jan. 2026
The next two teams on this list find themselves in eerily similar situations, from barren rosters to enviable cap space to hope at the quarterback position.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 10 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for barren
Adjective
And where there was once snow and ice just a few decades ago, there are now areas of shrub, along with barren rock and wetlands, the 2024 study reported.
—Doyle Rice, USA Today, 17 Jan. 2026
The Bruins’ cornucopia of goals from Saturday turned into a barren wasteland of squandered opportunities on Sunday.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026
In the 19th century, guano miners razed the place, removing most of the topsoil and leaving behind barren rock.
—Susan Casey, Travel + Leisure, 10 Jan. 2026
The next two teams on this list find themselves in eerily similar situations, from barren rosters to enviable cap space to hope at the quarterback position.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 10 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for barren
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barren
Adjective
-
Tennyson spent the rest of his life returning to that desolate seascape, literally but also literarily.—
Kathryn Schulz,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The word that came to mind was desolate.—
Ken Harbaugh,
The Atlantic,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Create Pools of Light Harsh, piercing lights tend to feel more sterile than serene.—
Shagun Khare,
The Spruce,
15 Feb. 2026
-
Using this technique, the government is breeding sterile, non-infected, male flies at a facility in Panama.—
Ciara McCarthy,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The Star-Telegram attempted to reach Atkins for comment, but was unsuccessful.—
Matthew Adams,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Last year, the moderate Democrat took on a crowded field of candidates in an unsuccessful bid to become New York City mayor.—
Jesse Zanger,
CBS News,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Banking has become functionally correct but emotionally devoid, with the industry swimming in a sea of sameness.—
Michael Abbott,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
-
That devoid ingredient hindered things exponentially.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Feb. 2024
Noun
-
Guthrie lives on nearly an acre, in a brown-brick, ranch-style house with an attached garage, a short gravel driveway, and desert landscaping.—
Paige Williams,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Pops of yellow flowers and ribbons dot the desert neighborhood as a message of hope for the family.—
Liz Kreutz,
NBC news,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Pilgrims also threw in coins as offerings, some later retrieved by impoverished people to survive.—
Norma Meyer,
Oc Register,
4 Feb. 2026
-
The penultimate episode saw Deathclaws descending on Freeside, an impoverished community on the fringes of New Vegas.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And after decades of futile wishes, maybe the place is finally ready for a new life — not today, not tomorrow, but in a few feverish years.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The metallic sheets cannot stop the damage Echard seeks to impose on her canvases, much like those tinfoil hats that some use in confused, futile efforts to shield themselves from pernicious invisible forces.—
Theo Belci,
Artforum,
1 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Despite their cap problems, the Dolphins could accommodate such a deal using void years, when some cap charges reflect after a player has left your team.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
13 Feb. 2026
-
The law also declares that contracts that support immigration enforcement are void and unenforceable.—
Stephanie Douglas,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Barren.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barren. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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