1. abandon, desert, desolate, forsake

leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch

Example Sentences:
'The mother deserted her children'

• abandon
• desert
• forsake

2. depopulate, desolate

reduce in population

Example Sentences:
'The epidemic depopulated the countryside'

• depopulate

3. desolate, devastate, lay waste to, ravage, scourge, waste

cause extensive destruction or ruin utterly

Example Sentences:
'The enemy lay waste to the countryside after the invasion'

• devastate
• lay waste to
• ravage
• scourge
• waste

4. bare, barren, bleak, desolate, stark

providing no shelter or sustenance

Example Sentences:
'bare rocky hills'
'barren lands'
'the bleak treeless regions of the high Andes'
'the desolate surface of the moon'
'a stark landscape'

• bare
• barren
• bleak
• stark

5. desolate

crushed by grief

Example Sentences:
'depressed and desolate of soul'
'a low desolate wail'

• disconsolate
• inconsolable
• unconsolable