1
as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
if tobacco fields aren't allowed to lie idle once every few years, they will become barren
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sterile
not able to produce fruit or offspring
the pear tree appears to be barren
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
that line of investigation proved barren, so the police tried other avenues
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in devoid
utterly lacking in something needed, wanted, or expected
their proposal for revitalizing the downtown business district is utterly barren of useful ideas
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in desert
land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops
lived out in the barrens where it was impossible to grow anything
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of barren
Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
Since that region is particularly barren, the wind picks up and starts blowing dust towards the Metroplex.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Mar. 2025
This is where the montage sequences get really aggressive, assaulting the viewer with imagery of barren alien landscapes and skulls with the flesh melting off of their faces.
—Katie Rife, IndieWire, 12 Mar. 2025
Even along the relatively mild coasts, where summer temperatures hover just below freezing, the land is a barren expanse of rock, ice and snow.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for barren
Adjective
At this time—in the Ediacaran Period—the land was overwhelmingly barren and lifeless; although shallow seas played host to an array of strange, soft bodied creatures.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
Since that region is particularly barren, the wind picks up and starts blowing dust towards the Metroplex.
—Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Mar. 2025
This is where the montage sequences get really aggressive, assaulting the viewer with imagery of barren alien landscapes and skulls with the flesh melting off of their faces.
—Katie Rife, IndieWire, 12 Mar. 2025
Even along the relatively mild coasts, where summer temperatures hover just below freezing, the land is a barren expanse of rock, ice and snow.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for barren
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barren
Adjective
-
Fourteen years of war have left the country desolate, and its people exhausted; millions have been displaced or were forced to become refugees.—
Raghed Waked & Justin Salhani,
The Dial,
25 Mar. 2025
-
That quality is maintained first and foremost by a desolate whistling-wind sound effect in the background of all the scenes, along with a sustained droning musical score.—
Ben Coxworth,
New Atlas,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Avoid sterile, clinical environments that can be intimidating.—
Ajay Prasad,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
-
The Pitt is set in Pittsburgh, not Chicago, and the season unfolds in real time, with overlapping crises ratcheting up tension as the cast careens around the sterile white set.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Last year, Harry’s legal action against the Home Office was unsuccessful and the court initially refused him permission to appeal.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
8 Apr. 2025
-
June became hopeful that the American rescue mission would lead to a reunion with her daughter, but that was unsuccessful.—
Abigail Lee,
Variety,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Banking has become functionally correct but emotionally devoid, with the industry swimming in a sea of sameness.—
Michael Abbott,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
-
Delle, devoid for so long from its intrinsic need for social interaction might be filling in the gaps by talking to himself.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
14 Feb. 2023
Noun
-
Post Malone is ready to take on the desert.—
Julyssa Lopez,
Rolling Stone,
14 Apr. 2025
-
Post Malone is ready to take on the desert.—
Julyssa Lopez,
Rolling Stone,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Criminal justice scholars say that when scores based on immutable facts are weighted so heavily in parole decisions, prisoners from impoverished, racially segregated communities are more likely to be hurt.—
Richard A. Webster,
ProPublica,
10 Apr. 2025
-
The once-vacant lot across the street from her childhood playground on Washington Avenue is now home to Wilcox Academy, an early learning center that represents a powerful investment in a historically impoverished community.—
Raymond Pierce,
Forbes.com,
2 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Impeachment of judges, however, is widely seen as a futile endeavor on Capitol Hill.—
Tara Suter,
The Hill,
3 Apr. 2025
-
The confrontation ends in an electric if futile horse chase.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
However, the void years tacked onto it made Smith difficult to keep around, and the Lions ultimately parted ways.—
Colton Pouncy,
New York Times,
11 Apr. 2025
-
For the first time in its 157-year history, the Grand National steeplechase is declared void because of a false start.—
Iliana Limón Romero,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Barren.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barren. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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