- Devoid of inhabitants; deserted: “streets which were usually so thronged now grown desolate” (Daniel Defoe).
- Barren; lifeless: the rocky, desolate surface of the moon.
- Rendered unfit for habitation or use: the desolate cities of war-torn Europe.
- Dreary; dismal.
- Bereft of friends or hope; sad and forlorn. See synonyms at sad.
- To rid or deprive of inhabitants.
- To lay waste; devastate: “Here we have no wars to desolate our fields” (Michel Guillaume Jean de Crèvecoeur).
- To forsake; abandon.
- To make lonely, forlorn, or wretched.
[Middle English desolat, from Latin dēsōlātus, past participle of dēsōlāre, to abandon : dē-, de- + sōlus, alone.]
desolately des'o·late·ly adv.desolateness des'o·late·ness n.
desolater des'o·lat'er or des'o·la'tor n.




