wasteland
[weyst-land]
- land that is uncultivated or barren.
- an area that is devastated, as by flood, storm, or war.
- something, as a period of history, phase of existence, or locality, that is spiritually or intellectually barren.
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Origin of wasteland
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for wasteland
Contemporary Examples
He took a time period that was a wasteland and gave it intelligence, wit, and consistent humor.
He might just save his regime, even if he rules little more than a wasteland filled with corpses.
The inaugural addresses of the presidents are, for the most part, a wasteland of howling rhetoric and dried-out inspiration.
Pompeii is at risk of becoming a wasteland as its ruins disintegrate to dust due to lack of maintenance.
Despite being a heavily patrolled police state, Iran has long borders that stretch across mountains and wasteland.
Are Israeli Agents Assassinating Iranian Scientists? A New Book ArguesDan Raviv, Yossi Melman
July 7, 2012
Historical Examples
Help was not always available, and there could be no waste movements in a wasteland.
Land of the Burnt ThighEdith Eudora Kohl
Our world of Rajj is a wasteland where once we and our fellows lived.
Brood of the Dark MoonCharles Willard Diffin
Hours later he spotted the caravan in the immensity of sand and wasteland.
Home is Where You Left ItAdam Chase
Nothing, for as far as the eye could see there was only wasteland.
Dave Dawson at CasablancaRobert Sydney Bowen
The Confederate force was already starting withdrawal, battery by battery, as the wasteland of the fire lighted them on their way.
Ride Proud, Rebel!Andre Alice Norton
wasteland
- a barren or desolate area of land, not or no longer used for cultivation or building
- a region, period in history, etc, that is considered spiritually, intellectually, or aesthetically barren or desolateAmerican television is a cultural wasteland
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for wasteland
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper