Des″ert (dĕz″ẽrt), n. [F. désert, L. desertum, from desertus solitary, desert, pp. of deserere to desert; de- + serere to join together. See Series.] 1. A deserted or forsaken region; a barren tract incapable of supporting population, as the vast sand plains of Asia and Africa which are destitute of moisture and vegetation.
A dreary desert and a gloomy waste. Pope.
2. A tract, which may be capable of sustaining a population, but has been left unoccupied and uncultivated; a wilderness; a solitary place.
He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord. Is. li. 3.
Also figuratively.
Before her extended
Dreary and vast and silent, the desert of life. Longfellow.