desert

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“
Did I not say that, as the desert is the strangest thing in nature, so a woman is the strangest thing in human nature?

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Definitions (43)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (15)

  1. noun A barren or desolate area, especially:
  2. noun A dry, often sandy region of little rainfall, extreme temperatures, and sparse vegetation.
  3. noun A region of permanent cold that is largely or entirely devoid of life.
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Examples (50)

  • JP Dutta's fascination with the desert is amazing, if anything else. —  NAACHGAANA
  • The Woodsman Knocking around in the desert is a pursuit I've enjoyed the better part of my life, and I still love doing it today. ...
  • "Most students assume the Nevada desert is a massive, barren land," Murdock explained. —  The Rebel Yell
  • Camping in the desert is a uniquely relaxing vacat
  • I suppose the middle of the desert is a good place to hide, especially if your ability is to be able to breathe underwater …
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

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Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

forest ·  wilderness ·  valley ·  ocean ·  plain ·  prairie ·  sea ·  landscape ·  sand ·  sky ·  waste ·  island

Used in the same contextWord Family

desert:   deserts ·  deserted
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (6)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (3)

  1. Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin dēsertum, from neuter past participle of dēserere, to desert; see desert3.
  2. Middle English, from Old French deserte, from feminine past participle of deservir, to deserve; see deserve.
  3. French déserter, from Late Latin dēsertāre, frequentative of Latin dēserere, to abandon : dē-, de- + serere, to join; see ser-2 in Indo-European roots.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (3)

  1. from Old French deserter, French déserter = Provencal Spanish Portuguese desertar = Italian desertare, disertare = Dutch deserteren = German desertiren = Danish desertere = Swedish desertera, from Middle Latin desertare, desert (also lay waste), freq. of Latin deserere, past participle desertus, desert, abandon, forsake, literally undo one's connection with, from de- privative + serere, join, bind: see series.
  2. Earlier often desart; from Middle English desert, deserte, desert, desart, deserd, diserd (only as noun), from Old French desert, dessert, dezert, French désert, desert (as a noun, Old French desert, French désert, masculine, Old French deserte, feminine, a desert), = Provencal desert = Spanish desierto =Portuguese deserto = Italian deserto, diserto, from Latin desertus, deserted, solitary, waste (neuter desertum, plural deserta, a desert), past participle of deserere, desert, abandon, forsake: see desert, v.
  3. from Middle English deserte, desert, dissert, from Old French deserte, desserte, merit, recompense, from deservir, desservir, deserve: see deserve.
 

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/dəˈzərt/
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Der dicke Dachdecker deckte dir dein Dach, drum dank dem dicken Dachdecker, dass der dicke Dachdecker dir dein Dach deckte. · weitläufig · und wenn sie nicht gestorben sind, so leben sie noch heute · redescheu · selbstverständlich