barrens

Noun

barren (plural barrens)

1. An area of low fertility and habitation, a desolate place.
   • Sol squinted out over the barrens to where the mountains shimmered in the heat haze.1990, Dan Simmons, The Fall of Hyperion, 1st edition, New York: Doubleday, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 165
2. (plural-normally) In particular, a usually elevated and flat expanse of land that only supports the growth of small trees and shrubs, and sometimes mosses or heathers, berries, and other marshy or moory vegetation, but little agriculture and few people.
   • The pine barrens are a site lonely enough to suit any hermit.

See all 9 meanings of barren