Dictionary definition · desolate
verb
- leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch"The mother deserted her children"
- reduce in population"The epidemic depopulated the countryside"
- cause extensive destruction or ruin utterly"The enemy lay waste to the countryside after the invasion"
adjective
- providing no shelter or sustenance"bare rocky hills"
- crushed by grief"depressed and desolate of soul"
Source: Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0).