deserter
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des·ert 1
(dĕz′ərt)n.
1. A barren or desolate area, especially:
a. A dry, often sandy region of little rainfall, extreme temperatures, and sparse vegetation.
b. A region of permanent cold that is largely or entirely devoid of life.
c. An apparently lifeless area of water.
2. An empty or forsaken place; a wasteland: a cultural desert.
3. Archaic A wild and uninhabited region.
adj.
1. Of, relating to, characteristic of, or inhabiting a desert: desert fauna.
2. Wild and uninhabited: a desert island.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin dēsertum, from neuter past participle of dēserere, to desert; see desert3.]
de·sert 2
(dĭ-zûrt′)n.
1. often deserts Something that is deserved or merited, especially a punishment: They got their just deserts when the scheme was finally uncovered.
2. The state or fact of deserving reward or punishment.
[Middle English, from Old French deserte, from feminine past participle of deservir, to deserve; see deserve.]
Word History: When Shakespeare says in Sonnet 72, "Unless you would devise some virtuous lie, / To do more for me than mine own desert," he is using the word desert in the sense of "worthiness; merit," a word perhaps most familiar to us in the plural, meaning "something that is deserved," as in the phrase just deserts. This word goes back to the Latin word dēservīre, "to devote oneself to the service of," which in Vulgar Latin came to mean "to merit by service." Dēservīre is made up of dē-, meaning "thoroughly," and servīre, "to serve." Knowing this, we can distinguish this desert from desert, "a wasteland," and desert, "to abandon," both of which go back to Latin dēserere, "to forsake, leave uninhabited," which is made up of dē-, expressing the notion of undoing, and the verb serere, "to link together." We can also distinguish all three deserts from dessert, "a sweet course at the end of a meal," which is from the French word desservir, "to clear the table." Desservir is made up of des-, expressing the notion of reversal, and servir (from Latin servīre), "to serve," hence, "to unserve" or "to clear the table."
de·sert 3
(dĭ-zûrt′)v. de·sert·ed, de·sert·ing, de·serts
v.tr.
1. To leave empty or alone; abandon.
2. To withdraw from, especially in spite of a responsibility or duty; forsake: deserted her friend in a time of need.
3. To abandon (a military post, for example) in violation of orders or an oath.
v.intr.
To forsake one's duty or post, especially to be absent without leave from the armed forces with no intention of returning.
[French déserter, from Late Latin dēsertāre, frequentative of Latin dēserere, to abandon : dē-, de- + serere, to join; see ser- in Indo-European roots.]
de·sert′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Noun | 1. |  deserter - a disloyal person who betrays or deserts his cause or religion or political party or friend etc.quitter - a person who gives up too easily |
| 2. | deserter - a person who abandons their duty (as on a military post) armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine - the military forces of a nation; "their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker" deviationist - an ideological defector from the party line (especially from orthodox communism) draft dodger, draft evader - someone who is drafted and illegally refuses to serve renegade - someone who rebels and becomes an outlaw walk-in - an operative who initiates his own defection (usually to a hostile country) for political asylum |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
deserter
noun defector, runaway, fugitive, traitor, renegade, truant, escapee, absconder, apostate He was a deserter from the army.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
deserter
nounThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
فارٌّ من الجُنْدِيَّه
zběh
desertør
sotilaskarkuri
katonaszökevény
liîhlaupi
zbeh
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
deserter
n (Mil, fig) → Deserteur(in) m(f)
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
desert1
(diˈzəːt) verb1. to go away from and leave without help etc; to leave or abandon. Why did you desert us?
2. to run away, usually from the army. He was shot for trying to desert.
deˈserted adjective1. with no people etc. The streets are completely deserted.
2. abandoned. his deserted wife and children.
deˈserter noun a man who deserts from the army etc.
deˈsertion (-ʃən) noun (an) act of deserting.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.