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desolation
[ des-uh-ley-shuhn ]
/ ˌdɛs əˈleɪ ʃən /
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noun
an act or instance of destroying or devastating land, population, community, etc: The war’s desolation of the land destroyed years of hard and hopeful work.
the state of being destroyed or devastated, as land, population, community, etc.: The utter desolation of the Western Front was captured in unforgettable photographs.
dreariness; barrenness:The poet fashions a mood of desolation and despair in his works.
deprivation of companionship; loneliness: Some homesteaders could not endure the desolation of life on the prairie, and returned to the city.
sorrow; grief; woe: She was so deep in her desolation, we don’t know if our words of comfort reached her.
a desolate place: The town was once a desolation.
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Words nearby desolation
Desna, desnood, deso, desocialize, desolate, desolation, desorb, desorption, De Soto, desoxy-, despair
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use desolation in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for desolation
desolation
/ (ˌdɛsəˈleɪʃən) /
noun
the act of desolating or the state of being desolated; ruin or devastation
solitary misery; wretchedness
a desolate region; barren waste
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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