desert1
/
dɪˈzəːt/
v.
- callously or treacherously abandon.
-
[usu. as adj. deserted]
leave (a place), causing it to appear empty.
- illegally leave the armed forces.
Derivative
Etymology
ME: from OFr. deserter, from late L. desertare, from L. desertus (see desert2).
desert2
/
ˈdɛzət/
n.
- a waterless, desolate area of land with little or no vegetation, typically covered with sand.
- a situation or area considered dull and uninteresting:
a cultural desert.
adj.
like a desert; uninhabited and desolate.
Etymology
ME: via OFr. from late L. desertum ‘something left waste’, neut. past part. of deserere ‘leave, forsake’.