DESERT Synonyms: 195 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the verb 'desert' contrast with its synonyms?

The words abandon and forsake are common synonyms of desert . While all three words mean "to leave without intending to return," desert implies that the object left may be weakened but not destroyed by one's absence. // a deserted town

Q: Where would 'abandon' be a reasonable alternative to 'desert'?

The words abandon and desert can be used in similar contexts, but abandon suggests that the thing or person left may be helpless without protection. // abandoned children

Q: When would 'forsake' be a good substitute for 'desert'?

The meanings of forsake and desert largely overlap; however, forsake suggests an action more likely to bring impoverishment or bereavement to that which is forsaken than its exposure to physical dangers. // a forsaken lover

desert 1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈde-zərt

Definition of desert next

as in barren

land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops we were lost in the desert for days without food

Synonyms & Similar Words

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desert

2 of 4

noun (2)

di-ˈzərt

as in discipline

usually deserts plural suffering, loss, or hardship imposed in response to a crime or offense the robbers got their just deserts

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

desert

3 of 4

verb

di-ˈzərt

as in to abandon

to leave (a cause or party) often in order to take up another the volunteer became disillusioned with his candidate and deserted to a political rival

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to leave

to cause to remain behind deserted the kids at the food court for some independent shopping

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

desert

4 of 4

adjective

as in arid

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb desert contrast with its synonyms?

The words abandon and forsake are common synonyms of desert. While all three words mean "to leave without intending to return," desert implies that the object left may be weakened but not destroyed by one's absence.

a deserted town

Where would abandon be a reasonable alternative to desert?

The words abandon and desert can be used in similar contexts, but abandon suggests that the thing or person left may be helpless without protection.

abandoned children

When would forsake be a good substitute for desert?

The meanings of forsake and desert largely overlap; however, forsake suggests an action more likely to bring impoverishment or bereavement to that which is forsaken than its exposure to physical dangers.

a forsaken lover

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of desert

Noun

However, a new study indicates that hominins may have adapted to desert life much earlier than previously thought. —

Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 16 Jan. 2025 Ther is an aerial flyover tour, a desert tour and even a private customizable tour with your own driver and guide, all very reasonably priced. —

Larry Olmsted, Forbes, 16 Jan. 2025

Verb

That decline is most visible through the emergence of scores of ghost towns and villages — locations with none or virtually nil inhabitants, deserted as local populations leave or die out. —

Karen Gilchrist, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2024 Dido, after her lover Aeneas deserts her, kills herself with his sword on a funeral pyre, but not before building an effigy of him to burn alongside her. —

Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2024

Adjective

Nor do the sunbaked, semi-desert grasslands of Prescott National Forest south of Camp Verde look like the kind of place the wispy, water-loving trees would thrive. —

Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 15 Sep. 2022 Construction of the mega-project is expected to start in earnest in the Karoo, a semi-desert natural region of the country, in 2022. —

Conrad Onyango, Quartz, 1 Feb. 2022 See all Example Sentences for desert

Recent Examples of Synonyms for desert

Verb

Beginning in July 1997, Thailand, Indonesia and South Korea abandoned dollar pegs, sending currencies tumbling.

— William Pesek, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
But the consistent presence of drug rehabilitation and criminal offenses dominating the background of potential candidates for the award led the league to eventually abandon it.

— Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Jan. 2025