desertion def

Definition of 'desertion'

Desertion in british english.

desertion in American English

Examples of 'desertion' in a sentence desertion, synonyms of 'desertion', cobuild collocations desertion, trends of desertion.

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de·ser·tion

De•ser•tion.

• abandonment
• abscondment
• absence without leave
• dereliction
• deviationism
• disappearance
• dishonorable discharge
• desert mariposa tulip
• Desert mouse
• desert olive
• desert paintbrush
• desert plant
• desert plume
• desert rheumatism
• desert rock
• desert rose
• desert sand verbena
• desert selaginella
• desert soil
• desert sunflower
• desert tortoise
• desert willow
• desertic soil
• desertification
• desertization
• Desertlessly
• deservedness
• deservingness
• desexualise
• desexualize
• desexualizing
• deserticolous
• Desertification and Regeneration in Central Asia
• Desertification Information System for the Mediterranean
• Desertification, Drought, Poverty and Agriculture
• deserting a sinking ship
• deserting/leaving a sinking ship
• Desertion of seamen
• desertisation
• deserts a sinking ship
• Deserts and xeric shrublands
• Deserts Like Eden
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Dictionary definition of desertion

The act of willfully and permanently abandoning one's post, duty, or allegiance without permission or lawful justification. "The soldier's comrades felt a sense of betrayal after his desertion."

Detailed meaning of desertion

It denotes the intentional act of leaving behind a position, organization, or group to which one had a commitment or obligation. Desertion often occurs in the context of military service, where it involves the unauthorized departure of a soldier from their assigned unit or from the military altogether. However, desertion can also pertain to other contexts, such as civil or political organizations, where an individual abandons their role or responsibilities without proper consent or justification. Desertion is typically seen as a breach of loyalty, trust, or duty, often carrying legal consequences and disciplinary actions. It is viewed as a serious offense that undermines the integrity, cohesion, and effectiveness of the entity from which one deserts.

Example sentences containing desertion

1. The soldier's desertion from the army resulted in a warrant for his arrest. 2. The act of desertion is considered a serious offense in the military. 3. The captain was shocked by the sudden desertion of several members of his crew. 4. The organization faced challenges due to the desertion of key members. 5. Desertion during wartime is often met with severe consequences. 6. The soldier was court-martialed for his desertion and stripped of his rank.

History and etymology of desertion

The noun 'desertion' finds its etymological roots in the Latin word 'desertio,' which is derived from the verb 'deserere.' This Latin term, 'deserere,' encompasses the notion of abandonment or forsaking. As societies and militaries organized, the concept of individuals willfully and permanently abandoning their duties, posts, or allegiances became increasingly significant. This led to the emergence of the Old French term 'desercion' and, subsequently, Middle English 'desercioun,' both of which retained the core sense of willful abandonment. Over time, 'desertion' became firmly established in the English language, referring to the act of willfully and permanently abandoning one's post, duty, or allegiance without permission or lawful justification, particularly in the context of military or organizational commitments.

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Further usage examples of desertion

1. The family struggled to cope with the emotional aftermath of their son's desertion. 2. The general implemented stricter measures to prevent instances of desertion in the ranks. 3. The deserter's actions cast a shadow over the unit's morale and trust. 4. The army implemented a program to support veterans who experienced post-war desertion. 5. The organization worked to address the underlying issues that led to employee desertion. 6. The sudden desertion of troops weakened our defenses. 7. Desertion from the army was punishable by severe penalties. 8. His desertion left a void in our team's leadership. 9. Desertion during wartime was seen as an act of betrayal. 10. The general lamented the increasing rate of desertion. 11. Desertion often stemmed from the horrors of war. 12. She couldn't bear the guilt that came with desertion. 13. Desertion from the mission jeopardized the operation. 14. Desertion was a stain on his otherwise honorable record. 15. The soldiers faced court-martial for their desertion. 16. Desertion was the only way to escape the oppressive regime. 17. The consequences of desertion were widely known. 18. Desertion shattered the unity of their once loyal group. 19. Desertion was a last resort for the disillusioned. 20. His desertion haunted him long after the war ended. 21. The commander grappled with the problem of desertion. 22. Desertion was a desperate act born out of despair. 23. Desertion was the ultimate act of defiance against tyranny. 24. The policy aimed to reduce desertion rates in the army. 25. Desertion eroded the trust among the ranks.

Quiz categories containing desertion

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abandonment,absconding,betrayal,forsaking,relinquishment,reneging,renunciation,withdrawal

eb68db_f89bdb52d3804e09bc70dd471d930fd1.mp3

abandonment, return, loyalty, commitment

https://static.wixstatic.com/media/eb68db_0520060abe204245a48186cfb9ae13ad~mv2.jpg, https://static.wixstatic.com/media/eb68db_dcaa522749d44677bb92a214c211baf8~mv2.jpg, https://static.wixstatic.com/media/eb68db_58a1eac1ced24fda84b20eda1c9bd668~mv2.jpg, https://static.wixstatic.com/media/eb68db_a3dcfb510cdd42b7a277c8c6a59b2a68~mv2.jpg

apostasy,defection,disloyalty,treachery

Departure and Leaving, Division and Separation, Ending and Conclusion, Renunciation and Suspension

Primary tabs

Desertion is willful abandonment of a person's duties or obligations , especially to a spouse or child. Some common uses of the term desertion in a legal sense include:

• Desertion is a ground for divorce in states with fault divorce . In the context of divorce, cases such as this one from Virginia explain that “Desertion occurs when one spouse breaks off marital cohabitation with the intent to remain apart permanently, without the consent and against the will of the other spouse.”
• As explained in this case from Georgia , the term “desertion” as an element in the offense of abandonment of a child, means “the willful forsaking and desertion of the duties of parenthood.”
• Desertion can also be the basis for a court to grant an adoption where a parent has deserted a child for a specified period of time. Cases such as this one from Oregon , explain that the term desertion as used in the context of the statute permitting adoption, means  parental conduct which indicates an intention to desert all parental duties and parental rights in the child. 

[Last updated in July of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team ]

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desertion noun

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What does the noun desertion mean?

There are six meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun desertion , one of which is labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

desertion has developed meanings and uses in subjects including

Entry status

OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.

How common is the noun desertion ?

How is the noun desertion pronounced, british english, u.s. english, where does the noun desertion come from.

Earliest known use

The earliest known use of the noun desertion is in the late 1500s.

OED's earliest evidence for desertion is from 1591, in the writing of William Perkins, theologian and Church of England clergyman.

desertion is a borrowing from French.

Etymons: French désertion .

Nearby entries

• desert, v. 1539–
• desert boot, n. 1948–
• deserted, adj. 1629–
• desertedness, n. 1818–
• deserter, n. ?a1645–
• desertful, adj.¹ 1583–
• desertful, adj.² 1601
• desertfully, adv. 1601–
• desertic, adj. 1936–
• desertification, n. 1974–
• desertion, n. 1591–
• desert ironwood, n. 1882–
• desert island, n. 1607–
• desertive, adj. 1596
• desertization, n. 1968–
• desert-lemon, n. 1889–
• desertless, adj.¹ 1556–
• desertless, adj.² 1822–
• desertlessly, adv. 1619–
• desertness, n. a1400–
• desert oak, n. 1896–

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Meaning & use

Pronunciation, entry history for desertion, n..

desertion, n. was first published in 1895; not yet revised.

desertion, n. was last modified in September 2023.

Revision of the OED is a long-term project. Entries in oed.com which have not been revised may include:

• corrections and revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
• new senses, phrases, and quotations which have been added in subsequent print and online updates.

Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into desertion, n. in September 2023.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

OED First Edition (1895)

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OED Second Edition (1989)

• View desertion in OED Second Edition

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Citation details

Factsheet for desertion, n., browse entry.

• 1.1 Etymology
• 1.2 Pronunciation
• 1.3.1 Derived terms
• 1.3.2 Related terms
• 1.3.3 Translations
• 1.4 Anagrams
• 2.1.1 Declension
• 2.2 Further reading

English [ edit ]

Etymology [ edit ].

Borrowed from Middle French désertion .

Pronunciation [ edit ]

• ( Received Pronunciation ) IPA ( key ) : /dɪˈzɜːʃən/
• ( General American ) IPA ( key ) : /dɪˈzɝʃən/
• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)ʃən

Noun [ edit ]

desertion ( countable and uncountable , plural desertions )

• The act of deserting .

Derived terms [ edit ]

• spiritual desertion

Related terms [ edit ]

Translations [ edit ], anagrams [ edit ].

• detersion , enteroids , interdose

Danish [ edit ]

desertion   c ( singular definite desertionen , plural indefinite desertioner )

Declension [ edit ]

Further reading [ edit ].

• “ desertion ” in Den Danske Ordbog

• English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
• English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ser- (bind)
• English terms borrowed from Middle French
• English terms derived from Middle French
• English 3-syllable words
• English terms with IPA pronunciation
• English terms with audio links
• Rhymes:English/ɜː(ɹ)ʃən
• Rhymes:English/ɜː(ɹ)ʃən/3 syllables
• English lemmas
• English nouns
• English uncountable nouns
• English countable nouns
• Danish lemmas
• Danish nouns
• Danish common-gender nouns
• Mandarin terms with redundant transliterations
• Danish nouns with red links in their headword lines

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Meaning of deserting in English

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desert verb ( RUN AWAY )

• buy someone out
• call someone up
• conscription
• demobilization
• draft dodger
• re-enlistment

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

desert verb ( LEAVE BEHIND )

• abandon ship
• abandonment
• absquatulate
• pull something off
• walk off (somewhere)
• without (so much as) a backward glance idiom

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to fasten the belt that keeps you in your seat in a car or a plane

Searching out and tracking down: talking about finding or discovering things

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• desert (RUN AWAY)
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Definition of desert

 (Entry 1 of 4)

Definition of desert  (Entry 2 of 4)

Definition of desert  (Entry 3 of 4)

transitive verb

intransitive verb

Definition of desert  (Entry 4 of 4)

Did you know?

Where does the phrase just deserts come from?

Why do we say that someone has gotten their just deserts ? Does this turn of phrase have anything to do with dessert (“a sweet food eaten at the end of a meal”) or desert (“a dry land with few plants and little rainfall”)? In fact, the phrase employs neither of these words. Instead, it uses a completely unrelated word that happens to be pronounced like the word for sweets and spelled like the one for a dry place: desert , meaning “reward or punishment deserved or earned by one’s qualities or acts.” This little-used noun is, as you might have guessed, related to the English verb deserve . It has nothing to do with arid, dry land, or with cookies and ice cream.

• no-man's-land
• defect (from)
• castigation
• chastisement
• comeuppance

abandon , desert , forsake mean to leave without intending to return.

abandon suggests that the thing or person left may be helpless without protection.

desert implies that the object left may be weakened but not destroyed by one's absence.

forsake suggests an action more likely to bring impoverishment or bereavement to that which is forsaken than its exposure to physical dangers.

Examples of desert in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'desert.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Middle English, "barren expanse of land (either wooded or arid), wasteland," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin dēserta "unfrequented places, wilderness," noun derivative from neuter plural (feminine singular in Late Latin) of dēsertus "empty of people, uninhabited" — more at desert entry 2

Middle English desert, deserte "barren, uninhabited, deserted, forsaken," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin dēsertus "empty of people, uninhabited," from past participle of dēserere "to part company with, abandon, leave uninhabited" — more at desert entry 3

borrowed from French déserter, going back to Old French, "to devastate, make uninhabited, abandon, leave," borrowed from Late Latin dēsertāre "to leave, abandon," frequentative of Latin dēserere "to part company with, abandon, leave uninhabited, leave in the lurch," from dē- de- + serere "to link together, join in a series" — more at series

Note: Note that Dictionnaire du Moyen Français divides deserter into two lemmas, assigning the senses "devastate, make uninhabited" to a derivative of desert "barren, uninhabited" (see desert entry 2 ) and the senses "abandon, leave" to a loan from Late Latin dēsertāre.

Middle English desert, dissert "fact of deserving reward or punishment, worthiness, merit," borrowed from Anglo-French desert, deserte, desserte "merit, reward, fact of deserving reward or punishment, wrongful conduct, reason, cause" (also continental Old & Middle French), derivative of deservir "to deserve, merit, earn, be entitled to" — more at deserve

Note: The derivation of Old French desert from deservir has been variously explained. Trésor de la Langue Française describes desserte as formed from the present tense base (i.e., the base lacking -v- ) of desservir ("Déverbal, formé sur le radical du présent de l'indicative de desservir "). P. Ruelle points in a different direction, judging both the Old French noun deserte and the adjective desert as a variant of the past participle deservi, descending from *desérvitum, a presumed by-form of classical dēservītum (see his "Notes sur le lexique des Isopets, " Romania, vol. 101, no. 401 [1980], pp. 77-78).

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

1603, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing desert

• desert island
• desert locust
• desert soil
• desert tortoise
• desert varnish
• food desert

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Cite this Entry

“Desert.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/desert. Accessed 21 May. 2024.

Kids Definition

Kids definition of desert.

Kids Definition of desert  (Entry 2 of 4)

Kids Definition of desert  (Entry 3 of 4)

Kids Definition of desert  (Entry 4 of 4)

Middle English desert "barren land," from early French desert (same meaning), derived from Latin deserere "to desert, abandon," from de- "from, away" and serere "to join together"

Middle English deserte "quality of being worthy of a reward or punishment," from early French desert (same meaning), from deservir "to deserve," from Latin deservire "to devote oneself to"

from French déserter "to desert, abandon," from Latin desertare (same meaning), derived from earlier deserere "to desert, abandon" — related to desert entry 1

More from Merriam-Webster on desert

Nglish: Translation of desert for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of desert for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about desert

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Definition of desertion noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

• The army was badly affected by desertions.

Questions about grammar and vocabulary?

Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English.

• She felt betrayed by her husband's desertion.
• Industrialization led to the growth of cities and the desertion of villages.
• the of the party by former supporters

Nearby words

• Desert Island Discs

•  LANGUE FRANÇAISE
•  DICTIONNAIRES BILINGUES
•  TRADUCTEUR
•  CONJUGATEUR
•  ENCYCLOPÉDIE
•  CUISINE
•  FORUM
•  JEUX
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• Suivez nous:    
• EN ES DE IT
• DÉFINITIONS

 désertion

nom féminin

(latin desertio, -onis )

• 1.  Infraction commise par le militaire régulièrement incorporé qui, sans droit, rompt le lien qui l'attache aux forces armées. (La désertion n'est souvent constituée qu'à l'issue d'un certain délai durant lequel le militaire se trouve en position d'absence illégale.)
• 2.  Action de déserter , de quitter un lieu : La désertion des campagnes.

Synonymes :

abandon - défection - reniement - renoncement

Contraire :

Homonymes de désertion

• désertions forme conjuguée du verbe déserter

Mots proches

À DÉCOUVRIR DANS L'ENCYCLOPÉDIE

• agence de presse.
• Ave, Caesar, morituri te salutant .
• carpe diem .
• champignon.
• contrebasse . [MUSIQUE]
• critique littéraire.
• Jefferson . Thomas Jefferson .
• locomoteur (appareil). [MÉDECINE]
• manchot . [FAUNE]
• Mérovingiens .
• morse . [FAUNE]
• réduction . [MÉDECINE]
• relief karstique.
• Versailles (traité de).
• Yougoslavie .

VOIR LA TRADUCTION

Lequel de ces mots ne prend qu'un seul « c » ?