desolate

American  

[des-uh-lit, des-uh-leyt] / ˈdɛs ə lɪt, ˈdɛs əˌleɪt /

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, cheerless, inconsolable, woeful, woebegone, wretched, miserable, lost, lonesome

   Antonyms:

   happy, delighted

5. dreary; dismal; gloomy.

   desolate prospects.

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verb (used with object)

desolated, desolating

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 British  

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

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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

Synonym Usage

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.

Other Word Forms

• desolately
  adverb
• desolateness
  noun
• desolater
  noun
• desolator
  noun
• quasi-desolate
  adjective
• quasi-desolately
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of desolate

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 )

Explanation

If you feel alone, left out, and devastated, you feel desolate. A deserted, empty, depressing place can be desolate too. If you know the word deserted, you have a clue to the meaning of desolate, a grim word that can describe feelings and places. When a person feels desolate, he feels deserted, lonely, hopeless, and sad. When a location is desolate, there's almost nothing there. Think of a rundown cabin in the middle of nowhere, with no running water and no stores or other people anywhere. That's a desolate setting. Being in a desolate place usually makes people feel desolate.

Example Sentences

The delicate pitter-patter of a drum’s cymbal is the only sound to break through the thick brick wall of the obscure performance venue, Sun Space, and reach the wide, desolate Sunland Boulevard.

From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026

West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo was desolate, insisting everyone in the game is now confused as to what constituted a foul in the penalty area at set-pieces.

From BBC • May 10, 2026

It’s a desolate seascape the robot finds at first, although the immersible camera provides a perspective missing from previous seasons of the show.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

A school newspaper article described the student center in 2023 as desolate and deserted.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

Cullen was a "beach pounder," and one of his duties was patrolling the three-mile stretch of desolate shoreline for any suspicious activity.

From Nazi Saboteurs by Samantha Seiple

Related Words

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