—desert /dɪˈzɜːt/ aep /-ˈzɝːt/
verb (LEAVE BEHIND) ↑Verb Endings for desert
F0 [T] to leave someone without help or in a difficult situation and not come back:
» He deserted his wife and family for another woman.Thesaurus+: ↑DepartingF0 [T] If a quality deserts you, you suddenly and temporarily lose it:
» All my confidence/courage deserted me when I walked into the exam room.Thesaurus+: ↑Losing and loss , ↑Winning and losingverb [I or T] (RUN AWAY) ↑Verb Endings for desert
► F0 to leave the armed forces without permission and with no intention of returning: » Soldiers who deserted and were caught were shot.» How many people desert from the army each year?Thesaurus+: ↑Joining or leaving the armyThesaurus+: ↑Disloyalty, betrayal and treason desert /ˈdez.ət/ aep /-ɚt/ noun [C or U]
A2 an area, often covered with sand or rocks, where there is very little rain and not many plants:
» They were lost in the desert for nine days.» We had to cross a large area of arid, featureless desert.» the desert sunSee picture: desert 
Thesaurus+: ↑Deserts, prairies and wildernessescultural, intellectual, etc. desert DISAPPROVING
F0 a place that is considered to have no cultural, intellectual, etc. quality or interest:
» This town is a cultural desert.Thesaurus+: ↑Unpleasant places , ↑Places and locations• • •
Extra Examples:» The flatness of the desert was broken only by a few large piles of rocks.» She gave a hair-raising account of her escape through the desert.» Living rough in the desert hardened the recruits a lot.» The terrorists assumed control of the plane and forced it to land in the desert.» At night, adult scorpions prowl the desert for insects.