1
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
a desolate house abandoned many years ago
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2025
The first fires tore across humble, pioneering patches of plant life no taller than your ankle, as well as burning through rather more astonishing, and truly bizarre, 25-foot columns of fungus that briefly held sway on this desolate world before trees.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for desolate
Adjective
The film opens in the desolate Arctic, where Victor has chased his creation, and flashes back as Frankenstein relates his life’s story to a Danish sea captain whose ship is stuck in the ice.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2025
The first fires tore across humble, pioneering patches of plant life no taller than your ankle, as well as burning through rather more astonishing, and truly bizarre, 25-foot columns of fungus that briefly held sway on this desolate world before trees.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for desolate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desolate
Adjective
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Yes, there are good reasons to question NASA's long-term plans for the Artemis lunar program—the woeful cost of the Space Launch System rocket, the complexity of new commercial landers, and a bleak budget outlook.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
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That's rather bleak, while Charlie Sheen's life has just been bonkers.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
12 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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So how does Fernanda end up bound on the floor of a deserted cabin, held hostage by one of her teachers and estranged from Annelise?—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
11 Sep. 2025
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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
Adjective
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The team wasn’t able to completely rule out that TRAPPIST-1e is a barren rock like its inner siblings, however, partly because of interference from its hyperactive star.—
Jonathan O'Callaghan,
Scientific American,
8 Sep. 2025
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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
Verb
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Some hardware is brass-plated, which means scrubbing could expose the metal underneath and ruin the finish.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
16 Sep. 2025
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However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.—
Simone Jasper,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The night serum visibly smooths wrinkles, reduces fine lines, and soothes the appearance of dark circles and uneven skin tone.—
Gabriela Izquierdo,
Southern Living,
17 Sep. 2025
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The scent is smoky yet sweet, spicy yet smooth, dark but with an underlying lightness—the result of combining clean white musk with rose, tobacco, suede, and cumin.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
16 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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The walk is presided over by its creator, a mysterious authoritarian figure known as the Major (Mark Hamill) who extolls the sadistic contest as a boon for the spirits of the impoverished American people.—
Megan McCluskey,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
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Probably the one that’s best known is the one about how Philomelus, a young, impoverished farmer and herdsman, struggled to push his plow through his fields.—
Mike Lynch,
Twin Cities,
7 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desolate. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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