desolate

[ adjective des-uh-lit; verb des-uh-leyt ]

adjective

1. barren or laid waste; devastated:

   a treeless, desolate landscape.

   Synonyms: bleak

2. deprived or destitute of inhabitants; deserted; uninhabited.

   Synonyms: remote

3. solitary; lonely:

   a desolate life.

4. having the feeling of being abandoned by friends or by hope; forlorn.

   Synonyms: hopeless, woeful, wretched, miserable, lost, lonesome, cheerless, inconsolable, woebegone

   Antonyms: happy, delighted

5. dreary; dismal; gloomy:

   desolate prospects.

verb (used with object)

, des·o·lat·ed, des·o·lat·ing.

1. to lay waste; devastate.

   Synonyms: ruin, ravage

2. to deprive of inhabitants; depopulate.
3. to make disconsolate.

   Synonyms: depress, sadden

4. to forsake or abandon.

   Synonyms: desert

desolate

adjective

1. uninhabited; deserted
2. made uninhabitable; laid waste; devastated
3. without friends, hope, or encouragement; forlorn, wretched, or abandoned
4. gloomy or dismal; depressing

verb

1. to deprive of inhabitants; depopulate
2. to make barren or lay waste; devastate
3. to make wretched or forlorn
4. to forsake or abandon

Derived Forms

• ˈdesolately, adverb
• ˈdesolateness, noun
• ˈdesoˌlater, noun

Other Words From

• deso·late·ly adverb
• deso·late·ness noun
• deso·later deso·lator noun
• quasi-deso·late adjective
• quasi-deso·late·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of desolate¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Latin dēsōlātus “forsaken,” past participle of dēsōlāre, from dē- de- + sōlāre “to make lonely” (derivative of sōlus sole ¹ )

Word History and Origins

Origin of desolate¹

C14: from Latin dēsōlāre to leave alone, from de- + sōlāre to make lonely, lay waste, from sōlus alone

Synonym Study

Desolate, disconsolate, forlorn suggest one who is in a sad and wretched condition. The desolate person is deprived of human consolation, relationships, or presence: desolate and despairing. The disconsolate person is aware of the efforts of others to console and comfort, but is unable to be relieved or cheered by them: She remained disconsolate even in the midst of friends. The forlorn person is lost, deserted, or forsaken by friends: wretched and forlorn in a strange city.

Example Sentences

The group stands out within the increasingly desolate Facebook newsfeed, not just for the volume of its posts but also the intensity of engagement, warranting a 30-person-strong moderation team.

From Slate

The ire of Zuckerberg’s fiercest critics is now focused on Elon Musk, the SpaceX and Tesla chief who took over Twitter, renamed it X, turned it into a desolate wasteland of unmoderated right-wing propaganda, flooded it with his own conspiracy theories, and is campaigning for Donald Trump.

From Slate

Most of the marchers fell away en route, but by the end of June a Hooverville-like camp housing as many as 15,000 bedraggled men and their families had sprung up in the desolate, muddy Anacostia Flats area of Washington.

From Los Angeles Times

Discovery asked to use depicts “Blade Runner 2049” star Ryan Gosling walking away from the camera across a desolate, dystopian landscape reduced to rubble and reddish dirt.

From Los Angeles Times

A line formed out the door, even as the shopping plaza around the small restaurant was desolate.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bare
• bleak
• derelict
• dreary
• empty
• isolated
• lonely
• lonesome
• uninhabited