depopulate
verb (used with object)
to remove or reduce the population of, as by destruction or expulsion.
had depopulated
-
past perfectof depopulate.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Then, with the luck of a gambler and the persistence of an insurance salesman, he made the most of the wartime blackouts and travel restrictions, which had depopulated many a hotel.
From Time Magazine Archive
Ancient wars had depopulated much of the city, however, and large areas of Volantis had begun to sink back into the mud on which it stood.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
By the fourth century bce, years of unrest had depopulated large swaths of the country.
From "Circumference" by Nicholas Nicastro
It is now long, long past midnight, and all is as silent around my habitation as if it were in the midst of a forest, or the plague had depopulated London.
From Life and Remains of John Clare "The Northamptonshire Peasant Poet" by J. L. Cherry
The army was demobilized, and this measure was bound up with the settlement of peasants in the regions which war had depopulated, or on new land.
From A History of China by Wolfram Eberhard
