| descent |
the act or process of going downward. [4 definitions] |
| describe |
to tell about; give a verbal account of. [2 definitions] |
| description |
the act of describing. [3 definitions] |
| descriptive |
characterized by description. [2 definitions] |
| descry |
to see or make out, esp. something obscured or at a distance. [2 definitions] |
| Desdemona |
in the Shakespearean tragedy, Othello, Othello's wife, whom he murders out of unfounded jealousy. |
| desecrate |
to violate the sacredness of; treat sacrilegiously. |
| desecration |
the act of or an instance of violating the sacredness of something. |
| desegregate |
to eliminate the segregation of races in. [2 definitions] |
| desegregation |
the act, result, or policy of eliminating segregation, esp. of racial or ethnic groups. |
| desensitize |
to cause to react with less intensity, as to light or other stimuli. [2 definitions] |
| desert1 |
a very dry, often sandy area with little or no plant growth. [5 definitions] |
| desert2 |
to abandon and thereby be remiss in one's duties or obligations. [3 definitions] |
| desert3 |
(often pl.) that which one deserves, esp. something unpleasant. |
| deserter |
someone who abandons or forsakes his or her military post, duties, or obligations. |
| desertification |
the transformation of fertile land to desert by natural causes, esp. drought, or through human activity such as deforestation, overgrazing, and the like. |
| desertify |
to cause to change from land capable of sustaining plant life and agriculture to desert land that is essentially barren. |
| desertion |
willful abandonment of one's spouse or children, as well as all related legal responsibilities. [2 definitions] |
| deserve |
to be qualified for or worthy of; merit. [2 definitions] |
| deserved |
rightly earned; merited. |
| deservedly |
with justification; rightly. |