What does desertify mean?
"Desertify" is a verb meaning to turn land into desert — that is, to strip it of vegetation, moisture, and fertility until it takes on the character of an arid wasteland. It is most often used in environmental contexts: overgrazing, deforestation, prolonged drought, and poor irrigation can all desertify previously productive farmland or grassland. The word is closely tied to "desertification," the noun describing this process, which entered widespread international use following severe droughts in Africa's Sahel region during the late twentieth century. In tone, "desertify" is somewhat formal and technical, appearing mostly in scientific writing, policy documents, and serious journalism rather than casual conversation. It functions both transitively ("human activity desertified the region") and, less commonly, intransitively ("the land desertified over decades"). The word carries strongly negative connotations, implying irreversible ecological damage, and serves as a compact way to describe one of the most visible consequences of climate change and land mismanagement worldwide.
verbTo make land into a desert, typically by destroying its vegetation and fertility; to cause a region to undergo desertification.
- (of land or terrain) To be made barren or arid, losing vegetation and becoming desert-like; to suffer desertification.
- (transitive) To convert or degrade fertile land into desert, as through overgrazing, deforestation, drought, or poor agricultural practice.
"Overgrazing by livestock has steadily desertified the once-fertile grasslands."
"Decades of unsustainable farming have desertified vast stretches of the Sahel."
"Without careful water management, these plains will simply desertify."
It took the word 'desertification' from a 1970s drought crisis to spawn 'desertify' — proof that sometimes the noun comes first and the verb has to catch up.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of desertify
"Desertify" is formed from the English noun "desert," borrowed via Old French from Latin "desertum" (a forsaken place), combined with the suffix "-ify" from Latin "-ificare" (to make). The word arose in the twentieth century, largely as a back-formation from "desertification," a term popularized after United Nations conferences on drought and land degradation in the 1970s. Its cognates include "desertion," "deserter," and the adjective "deserted," all tracing back to the same Latin root meaning to abandon or leave behind.
Related word forms
How desertify is actually used
A relatively modern technical term used chiefly in environmental science, geography, and journalism about climate and land degradation. It is most commonly found in passive constructions ('land has been desertified'). The derived noun 'desertification' is considerably more frequent than the verb itself.
Easily confused with desertify
The verb 'desert' means to abandon someone or something, whereas 'desertify' refers specifically to turning land into desert.