desolation

noun

des·​o·​la·​tion ˌde-sə-ˈlā-shən How to pronounce desolation (audio)
ˌde-zə-
1
: the action of desolating
the pitiful desolation and slaughter of World War ID. F. Fleming
2
a
: grief, sadness
… he put his trembling hands to his head, and gave a wild ringing scream, the cry of desolation.George Eliot
3
: devastation, ruin
a scene of utter desolation
4
: barren wasteland
looked out across the desolation

Examples of desolation in a Sentence

She sank into a state of desolation and despair. photos that show the desolation of war
Recent Examples on the Web Arrakis is not the sole setting for the film, either—like Caladan, the ancestral home planet of House Atreides for which Norway was a stunt double in the previous film, there are other worlds explored here that sharply contrast Arrakis’s burning red desolation. Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Mar. 2024 Our first glimpse of Samet, a tiny speck trudging across a blinding-white landscape, is a typical Ceylan overture: a lone figure dwarfed, spectacularly, by a terrain that reflects his inner desolation. Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 23 Feb. 2024 Her character’s inscrutable mien keeps John and the audience a little off-balance, though Erskine reveals glimmers of emotional desolation in Jane’s steady gaze. Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 1 Feb. 2024 Israel makes a desolation and may call it peace The doctrine that emerged out of the conflict was most famously articulated by IDF commander Gadi Eisenkot. Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 10 Nov. 2023 Quite recently, architecture has sparked her interest, and she was intrigued by our pre-interview chatter by the raw industrial desolation of Scott Avenue in Bushwick, location of the previous night’s Luar show. Mark Holgate, Vogue, 16 Feb. 2024 The first – only a missionary motivation of this kind can justify the sacrifices, the hierarchical deprivations, the regional desolation, that Putin asks of his population. Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024 However, in place of the usual campaigning fanfare that accompanies an election cycle, there is a sense of desolation among many of the country’s 230 million population, nearly 40% of whom are living in poverty, according to the World Bank. Sophia Saifi, CNN, 6 Feb. 2024 Judging by the community-board conversations, the neighborhood concerns are mostly the usual — noise, drinkers, late-night activity — but given the current desolation of that building, this seems like a good swap for the neighborhood: turning a dead mall into a live theater. Curbed, 11 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'desolation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English desolacion, desolacioun "state of distress or hardship, feeling of distress, affliction," borrowed from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French desolacion, borrowed from Late Latin dēsōlātiōn-, dēsōlātiō "abandonment, solitude," from Latin dēsōlāre "to leave all alone, forsake, empty of inhabitants" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at desolate entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of desolation was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near desolation

Cite this Entry

“Desolation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/desolation. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

desolation

noun
des·​o·​la·​tion ˌdes-ə-ˈlā-shən How to pronounce desolation (audio)
ˌdez-
1
: the action of desolating
2
: sadness resulting from grief or loneliness
3
: the condition of being desolated : ruin
4
: lifeless land

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