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

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

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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

Example 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

Built in 1937 in the foothills of the McDowell Mountains, Taliesin West was Wright’s winter home and desert laboratory. — News Desk, Artforum, 19 Oct. 2026 Tragedy plunges community into grief Bend, a picturesque city of about 100,000 people, sits in the high desert landscape of central Oregon. — Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026

Verb

The president’s 2024 campaign leaned into crypto to attract young men, a demographic that is deserting Republicans in the midterms. — Isaac Arnsdorf, Washington Post, 1 Oct. 2026 Tennessee Williams’ autobiographical drama centers on a writer haunted by deserting his delusional mother Amanda and sister Laura, who’s painfully shy and retreats to her collection of glass animals. — Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 17 Sep. 2026

Adjective

Elsewhere in California, a mandatory wood-burning ban is in force for the South Coast Air Basin—which includes Orange County and non-desert portions of Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties—until midnight on Saturday. — Joe Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025 The program includes guided indoor cardio workouts, various levels of drills and interval training, and running trails through the surrounding semi-desert wilderness that range from three to nine miles. — Joe Yogerst, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for desert

Recent Examples of Synonyms for desert

Noun

In their place is a world reduced to a wasteland by an environmental cataclysm, supposedly caused by Korra herself.

— Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
The toxic wasteland of Sentinel 1 reduces your vehicle's durability and can stop your Ramjet from working in acid pools.

— Hayes Madsen, Space.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of wasteland

Noun

Today, a fourth discipline has quietly become just as important.

— Tom Wicky, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026
But Roger remembers the particular discipline of working on low-budget film productions, when stock and time were precious and rolling the camera was consequential.

— Callum McLennan, Variety, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of discipline

Verb

Many hotels have abandoned single-use amenities, and the JW Marriott has followed that move by installing refillable shampoo and other containers.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Oct. 2026
Fallen trees blocked forest roads, snow forced them to abandon some attempts and return later, and on one climb, a navigation error sent them up the wrong side of the peak.

— Harllie Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of abandon

Verb

One flight last week leaving from al-Qassim airport north of Riyadh to Geneva, sold for €94,000 ($105,000), compared with a price of about €60,000 ($67,000) before the closure of the main airport in Riyadh.

— Melissa Hancock, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
This serving tray combines natural rattan with an elevated floral pattern filled with roses and autumn leaves atop a stainless steel base.

— Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of leave

Adjective

Most of Southern California is arid and rarely receives rainfall during summer and early fall.

— Nicholas Grondin, The Conversation, 12 Oct. 2026
The arid hilltops of the West Bank have seen shepherds come and go for thousands of years, and now some of these shepherds are behind settler violence against Palestinians.

— Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of arid

Noun

Lent, the period of spiritual preparation leading up to Easter, recalls his 40 days of fasting in the wilderness.

— Shushan Karapetian, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2026
In The Death of Robin Hood, Hugh Jackman plays the bandit of Nottingham, aged and retired to a hermit's life in the wilderness.

— K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of wilderness

Noun

For boards and CXOs, fault tolerance, error correction, economics and demonstrable advantage still matter.

— Rajjie Sarmey, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Shortages of corrections officers result in greater restrictions on the movement of incarcerated people, who then have less access to health appointments, group therapy and other programming.

— Jaquelyn Jahn, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of correction

Verb

Quebec voters have twice rejected independence, most recently by a razor-thin margin in a 1995 referendum.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
For countries that rejected the open international order, as the axis countries do today, the benefits were far fewer and the penalties considerable.

— Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Foreign Affairs, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of reject

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desensitized

desert

deserted

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“Desert.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desert. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of desert

noun (1)

noun (2)

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