51Թ

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desolation

[ des-uh-ley-shuhn ]

noun

  1. an act or instance of destroying or devastating land, population, community, etc:

    The war’s desolation of the land destroyed years of hard and hopeful work.

  2. the state of being destroyed or devastated, as land, population, community, etc.:

    The utter desolation of the Western Front was captured in unforgettable photographs.

  3. dreariness; barrenness:

    The poet fashions a mood of desolation and despair in his works.

  4. deprivation of companionship; loneliness:

    Some homesteaders could not endure the desolation of life on the prairie, and returned to the city.

  5. sorrow; grief; woe:

    She was so deep in her desolation, we don’t know if our words of comfort reached her.

  6. a desolate place:

    The town was once a desolation.



desolation

/ ˌɛəˈɪʃə /

noun

  1. the act of desolating or the state of being desolated; ruin or devastation
  2. solitary misery; wretchedness
  3. a desolate region; barren waste
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of desolation1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English desolacioun, dis(s)olacioun, from Late Latin ŧōپō- (stem of ŧōپō ) “abandonment,” equivalent to ŧō(ܲ) desolate ( def ) + -ō- -ion ( def )
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

But their bond, the way they help anchor each other, helps them face the desolation that seems to rise up from the very roads they clear.

From

The prime minister recalled feeling "a sickness" and "air of desolation" as he tried to make sense of "the enormity of this barbarous, planned, industrialised murder".

From

Originally formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1978, The Cure continue to endure as alternative rock’s goth icons - pitching lyrics of love, angst and desolation against a kaleidoscope of melodies.

From

The desolation of Kristofferson's downbeat delivery tells you this song is about much more than a bad hangover.

From

The blistering heat — with an average high temperature that’s more than 100 degrees four months of the year — only heightens the sense of desolation.

From

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