desert
noun
a region so arid because of little rainfall that it supports only sparse and widely spaced vegetation or no vegetation at all.
have deserted
-
present perfectof desert.present perfect
Used to describe actions that started in the past and continue into or have direct relevance to the present.
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.
Incoming Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said on Jan. 14 that two million Ukrainians are dodging the draft and more than 200,000 soldiers have deserted, amounting to around one-fifth of the entire armed forces.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026
Nowadays, with the film business contracting around blockbusters, the little pictures, the B pictures and the silly pictures have deserted the theaters for television which, in its streaming multiplicity, has room to absorb them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2025
“I spend probably an equal amount of time putting back random things people have deserted as I do cheesemongering,” joked Jordan Edwards, who works at the Murray’s cheese counter at the West Seattle QFC.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 31, 2023
In another note she wrote: "I am lost for words for all the lovely things you bring into my life, when many people would have deserted this ship!"
From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2023
Were we more subtly differentiated we must long since have gone mad, have deserted, or have fallen.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
