wasteland
noun
waste·land
ˈwāst-ˌland 
also -lənd
1
: barren or uncultivated land
a desert wasteland
2
: an ugly often devastated or barely inhabitable place or area
3
: something (such as a way of life) that is spiritually and emotionally arid and unsatisfying
Examples of wasteland in a Sentence
The outskirts of the city became a grim industrial wasteland.
That part of the country is a cultural wasteland.
the vast wasteland of television
Recent Examples on the Web
So much was erased in so little time, leaving the lasting impression, whether from afar or close-up, of a wasteland — a place almost wiped off the map.
—
Greg Goldin, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2025
Our Western inheritance, then: the concept of the deep underground as wasteland, dump, terminus of the unredeemable.
—Literary Hub, 11 June 2025
Growing up in a 'social wasteland' Fisher grew up playing with basketballs and nerf guns around his cul-de-sac with a group of neighborhood kids.
—Rachel Hale, USA Today, 7 June 2025
The moon spent a few million years as a volcanic wasteland, covered with ongoing eruptions that spewed from mountains and even from the ground itself.
—Nola Taylor Tillman, Space.com, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for wasteland
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Greg Goldin, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2025
Our Western inheritance, then: the concept of the deep underground as wasteland, dump, terminus of the unredeemable.
—Literary Hub, 11 June 2025
Growing up in a 'social wasteland' Fisher grew up playing with basketballs and nerf guns around his cul-de-sac with a group of neighborhood kids.
—Rachel Hale, USA Today, 7 June 2025
The moon spent a few million years as a volcanic wasteland, covered with ongoing eruptions that spewed from mountains and even from the ground itself.
—Nola Taylor Tillman, Space.com, 8 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for wasteland
Cite this Entry
“Wasteland.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wasteland. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
wasteland
noun
waste·land
ˈwāst-ˌland
1
: land that is not cultivated or not fit for the cultivation of crops
2
: an ugly often ruined place or area
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