desolate

(dĕsˈə-lĭt, dĕzˈ-)

1. a. Devoid of inhabitants; deserted: “streets which were usually so thronged now grown desolate” (Daniel Defoe).
   b. Barren; lifeless: the rocky, desolate surface of the moon.
2. Rendered unfit for habitation or use: the desolate cities of war-torn Europe.
3. Dreary; dismal.
4. Bereft of friends or hope; sad and forlorn. See Synonyms at sad.

1. To rid or deprive of inhabitants.
2. To lay waste; devastate: “Here we have no wars to desolate our fields” (Michel Guillaume Jean de Crèvecoeur).
3. To forsake; abandon.
4. To make lonely, forlorn, or wretched.

Related Forms:

• desˈo·late·ly adverb

• desˈo·late·ness noun

• desˈo·latˌer, desˈo·laˌtor noun