n. One who, or that which, desolates or lays waste. Mede. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖a. [ L. desolatus, p. p. of desolare to leave alone, forsake; de- + solare to make lonely, solus alone. See Sole, a. ] 1. Destitute or deprived of inhabitants; deserted; uninhabited; hence, gloomy; as, a desolate isle; a desolate wilderness; a desolate house. [ 1913 Webster ]

I will make Jerusalem . . . a den of dragons, and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant. Jer. ix. 11. [ 1913 Webster ]

And the silvery marish flowers that throng
The desolate creeks and pools among. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Laid waste; in a ruinous condition; neglected; destroyed; as, desolate altars. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Left alone; forsaken; lonely; comfortless. [ 1913 Webster ]

Have mercy upon, for I am desolate. Ps. xxv. 16. [ 1913 Webster ]

Voice of the poor and desolate. Keble. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Lost to shame; dissolute. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Destitute of; lacking in. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

I were right now of tales desolate. Chaucer.

Syn. -- Desert; uninhabited; lonely; waste. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Desolated; p. pr. & vb. n. Desolating. ] 1. To make desolate; to leave alone; to deprive of inhabitants; as, the earth was nearly desolated by the flood. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To lay waste; to ruin; to ravage; as, a fire desolates a city. [ 1913 Webster ]

Constructed in the very heart of a desolating war. Sparks. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. reduced to a barren and lifeless state.
Syn. -- blasted, desolate, devastated, ravaged, ruined, wasted. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

adv. In a desolate manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state of being desolate. [ 1913 Webster ]