How to Use desert in a Sentence

desert

1 of 3 noun
  • To ride a horse across the desert.
    — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 15 Jan. 2026
  • Phoenix has the next two in the desert.
    — Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
  • There isn’t much to do in the desert.
    — Jason Lloyd, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Hadn’t he been told this was a desert?
    — Literary Hub, 6 Feb. 2026
  • But so far, it’s been as dry as the desert.
    — Zack Rosenblatt, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
  • But xeriscape doesn't mean your yard has to look like a desert.
    — Daniel Scott, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 June 2026
  • Life in the desert is built around timing.
    — Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 2 Mar. 2026
  • Many of us love our weekends in the desert.
    — Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 28 Mar. 2026
  • The beaver is almost ready in the desert.
    — James Powel, USA Today, 12 May 2026
  • There's a lake in the middle of the desert.
    — Dana Taylor, USA Today, 18 Mar. 2026
  • But the area wasn't a desert when Spinosaurus was alive.
    — Rebecca Hersher, NPR, 22 Feb. 2026
  • That’s what makes desert blooms so special.
    — Roger Naylor, AZCentral.com, 29 Aug. 2025
  • The desert air is making her hair reach new heights.
    — Ali Barthwell, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Don’t be fooled by their drab desert hues on the outside.
    — Paula Conway, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025
  • Sand cats are the sole only species that live in the true desert.
    — Margherita Bassi, Popular Science, 10 June 2026
  • There's been no need to go to the desert this winter to play golf.
    — Eric Christensen, CBS News, 13 Apr. 2026
  • The hope has been left in the desert, and the goodwill has dried up.
    — Diamond Vences, Charlotte Observer, 14 Sep. 2025
  • When the desert sun proves too hot, find shade in the sheltered lounge area.
    — Bailey Berg, Architectural Digest, 8 Apr. 2026
  • This is Claire’s time-travel desert.
    — Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 26 Mar. 2026
  • The remnants of a rain shower in the desert.
    — Daniel Wine, CNN Money, 3 June 2026
  • Read more to find out what makes this scenic desert landscape the best in the state.
    — Paige Moore, AZCentral.com, 10 Oct. 2025
  • The way the desert seems to hold its breath before sunrise.
    — Rowan Jacobsen, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
  • But out there in the desert, weird things begin to happen.
    — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 19 Sep. 2025
  • Stay cool amid the desert heat by wearing a crochet dress or set.
    — Daisy Maldonado, InStyle, 3 Apr. 2026
  • Its births were triggered by rainfall in the bone-dry desert.
    — Abigail Tucker, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 June 2023
  • Saturday’s game in the desert proved as much.
    — Doug Haller, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
  • Commuter engines revved and the desert winds picked up around him.
    — Hayleigh Evans, AZCentral.com, 28 Aug. 2025
  • Some desert plants have lookalikes or toxic parts.
    — Tiffany Acosta, AZCentral.com, 19 Sep. 2025
  • She had been stabbed multiple times and left nude in the desert.
    — Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 23 Sep. 2025
  • An endless desert landscape of canyons against the open sky.
    — Lauren Villagran, USA Today, 28 Feb. 2026

desert

2 of 3 adjective
  • The terrain is mountainous, a mix of desert and semi-desert plains.
    — Ope Adetayo, Los Angeles Times, 3 May 2026
  • It should be kept in mind that the territory the cession of which is provided for is largely desert and very sparsely inhabited.
    — Anonymous, Foreign Affairs, 8 Oct. 2011
  • Construction of the mega-project is expected to start in earnest in the Karoo, a semi-desert natural region of the country, in 2022.
    — Conrad Onyango, Quartz, 1 Feb. 2022
  • Spring training shifts into high gear this week with the Cubs and White Sox meeting on Friday in a cross-desert classic to start Cactus League play.
    — Matt Zahn, CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026
  • The program includes guided indoor cardio workouts, various levels of drills and interval training, and running trails through the surrounding semi-desert wilderness that range from three to nine miles.
    — Joe Yogerst, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Much of eastern Washington has an arid, semi-desert environment that specializes in warm-climate wines like Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah.
    — Megan McCluskey, Time, 1 July 2021
  • The highest non-desert temperatures could occur in Escondido, which is expected to hit 93, and El Cajon, which will top out at 92.
    — Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Apr. 2021
  • Elsewhere in California, a mandatory wood-burning ban is in force for the South Coast Air Basin—which includes Orange County and non-desert portions of Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties—until midnight on Saturday.
    — Joe Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
  • Separately, a mandatory wood-burning ban for residents in the South Coast Air Basin in California—which includes Orange County and non-desert portions of Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties—is in effect for Saturday.
    — Joe Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Nov. 2025

desert

3 of 3 verb
  • She had been married for just over a year when her husband deserted her.
  • The inhabitants had deserted the town.
  • He was deserted by his friends and family.
  • The block, once home to dozens of trailers, was deserted.
    — Max Klaver, Miami Herald, 31 Dec. 2025
  • His form may desert him, or injury might intervene.
    — Graham Scott, New York Times, 9 June 2026
  • But in the ring, his mojo deserted him.
    — Heather Abbott, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025
  • Rafael’s decision to desert the military would change the course of his life.
    — Mike Damiano, BostonGlobe.com, 24 Dec. 2022
  • Albuquerque’s fleet had been struck by famine, and many of his men had deserted him.
    — Sanat Pai Raikarall, Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Apr. 2026
  • Their form has deserted them at the worst possible time.
    — Graham Ruthven, New York Times, 24 May 2026
  • Ironman races are held in locations around the world, from coastal cities to desert landscapes.
    — Tiffany Acosta, AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2025
  • The play area was deserted except for two brothers.
    — Jenisha Watts, The Atlantic, 23 Mar. 2026
  • The road was now open to Kabul, where the police and the army were starting to desert their posts.
    — New York Times, 10 Dec. 2021
  • The venue compound was largely deserted after three days of large crowds at the event.
    — Aditya Soni, USA Today, 19 Feb. 2026
  • Succulents are native to desert climates, which can be very hot during the day, and very cold at night.
    — Peg Aloi, The Spruce, 12 May 2026
  • Streets of the town were deserted Friday, many homes had their curtains drawn and shops were closed.
    — Arkansas Online, 24 Jan. 2026
  • Sean, 17, deserts his post in the midst of the Iraq war and returns to England.
    — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 5 Dec. 2025
  • For 80 years the lighthouse sat deserted.
    — Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
  • But classrooms sat half-empty and the playground was deserted.
    — Sam Metz, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2026
  • Ghulam Ali whipped his head around to see if anyone else was there, but the fields were deserted at this time of day.
    — Literary Hub, 30 June 2026
  • Residents have been forced to shelter in their homes, with shops shut and streets largely deserted.
    — Patrick Smith, NBC News, 18 Apr. 2023
  • Botswana is home to diverse landscapes that span delta to desert, and the local culture is vibrant and inviting.
    — Brad Japhe, Travel + Leisure, 6 June 2023
  • They may have been killed, wounded, captured or deserted, but their status is unknown.
    — USA TODAY, 8 May 2023
  • Looking out their window, the Fleischmanns could see the city was deserted.
    — Daniel Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 23 Feb. 2026
  • These folks won’t desert their teams, no matter how many NFL Sundays end in heartache.
    — Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Jan. 2026
  • Within minutes, the square was deserted.
    — Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 2 Mar. 2026
  • But that scoring has deserted them at an inopportune time.
    — Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 5 Apr. 2026
  • Right at that time, a drying climate was transforming the Sahara from grasslands to desert.
    — Byjoshua Sokol, science.org, 27 Mar. 2023
  • From hotels to theme parks to jails, the Bluegrass State has deserted sites galore.
    — Keely Doll, Louisville Courier Journal, 8 Aug. 2025
  • But lawmakers are also keeping an ear out for colleagues who backed Jordan in the first round but may desert him this time.
    — WSJ, 18 Oct. 2023
  • Yes, moviegoers have pretty much deserted the cineplex to stay home with streaming.
    — Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 7 Dec. 2025

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

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