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

Synonyms

• barren
• desert
• desolation
• heath
• no-man's-land
• waste

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

McCarthy’s harrowing post apocalyptic tale of a boy and his father making their way through a wasteland populated by the degraded remains of human civilization is brilliantly adapted by Larcenet. —Rob Salkowitz, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024

Mindfulness techniques are powerful antidotes to mindless virtual excesses like immersive gaming, Internet surfing or streaming the vast television wasteland. —Bryan Robinson, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024

This season is officially worse than the last, USC completing its regular season with a 6-6 record and probably destined for a minor bowl in a desert wasteland. —Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2024

The launches show the ability of Palestinian militant groups to fire rockets into Israel despite more than 13 months of an aerial and ground offensive that turned vast land in the enclave into wasteland and displaced most of the 2.3 million population. —Reuters, USA TODAY, 18 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids 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