Word.ws English Dictionary

deserting

deserting is the present participle and gerund of desert.

Meaning of desert

Verb

desert (third-person singular simple present deserts, present participle deserting, simple past and past participle deserted)

  1. To leave (anything that depends on one's presence to survive, exist, or succeed), especially when contrary to a promise or obligation; to abandon; to forsake.
    • You can't just drive off and desert me here, in the middle of nowhere.
    Synonyms:
    defect
  2. To leave one's duty or post, especially to leave a military or naval unit without permission.
    • Anyone found deserting will be punished.

See all 7 meanings of desert

Words formed from deserting

Phrases with deserting

Questions about deserting

What is deserting the present participle and gerund of?
Deserting is the present participle and gerund of desert.

Words near deserting in the dictionary

  1. desertified
  2. desertifies
  3. desertify
  4. desertifying
  5. desertin'
  6. deserting
  7. deserting the diet
  8. desertion
  9. desertions
  10. desertisation
  11. desertization

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: deserting (page history and authors); desert (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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