Definition of wastelandnext
as in desert
land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops with proper irrigation and fertilizer, they turned the desert wasteland into a fertile plain

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of wasteland Haggerty noted what the Artemis crew saw on the moon’s surface, including steep canyon walls and barren wasteland. Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026 Jungle The tropical world is full of jungles, but the word jungle itself is from Sanskrit, jaṅgala (through Hindi jaṅgal), meaning a desert or wasteland area. Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Mar. 2026 Now, the anti-wealth Marxist agenda taking over the Democratic Party is worsening the divide, turning blue-state economies into wastelands and condemning their least mobile residents to poverty. Betsy McCaughey, Boston Herald, 16 Mar. 2026 The shrinking lake left behind a wasteland crusted in toxic salt. Michael Snyder, Saveur, 11 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for wasteland
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wasteland
desert
Noun
  • Most houses in the area were built by Palmer & Krisel, the architecture firm responsible for Palm Springs—from the car, see butterfly roofs; see lime-green desert modern; see hot pink, turquoise.
    Olivia Kan-Sperling, Artforum, 2 May 2026
  • Construction in the Arizona desert damaged an enormous Indigenous ground etching resembling a fish that is thought to be at least 1,000 years old.
    Jake Spring, Washington Post, 1 May 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Wasteland.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wasteland. Accessed 3 May. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on wasteland

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster