Deseret

De·se·ret
D2E1S1E1R1E1T1
/dɛz.əˈɹɛt//dɛz.ɚ.ɛt/archaic/dɛˈsiːɹɛt/

proper noun

A state, proposed in 1849 and never recognized, which would have included most of Utah and Nevada and parts of other states.

Less commonScrabble 8

Meanings

proper noun

alternative 𐐔𐐯𐑅𐐨𐑉𐐯𐐻

  1. historicalA state, proposed in 1849 and never recognized, which would have included most of Utah and Nevada and parts of other states.
    1 more example

    In 1849 the Mormons organized a "free and independent" government and erected the "State of Deseret," with Brigham Young as its head. But the very next year Congress deliberately snubbed it and created the "Territory of Utah" out of the same accumulation of mountains, sage-brush, alkali and general desolation, -- but made Brigham Governor of it.

    1872, Mark Twain, “Appendix A”, in Roughing It, Hartford, Conn.: American Publishing Co.
  2. poeticThe state of Utah itself, especially the Salt Lake Valley and environs.

    Nearly 1,000 people attended tours of the 15,000-resident city, a dinner and a ceremony to commemorate Utah's Jan. 4 birthday, when the land of Deseret became an arm of the Union.

    1998 January 4, Jeffrey P. Haney, “Lehi takes center stage at Statehood Day events”, in Deseret News, Lehi, Utah: Deseret News Publishing Co.
  3. A script, invented in Utah, conceived of as a radical reform and replacement of the Latin script, intended for writing English phonetically. Example: the word seven in Deseret is 𐑅𐐯𐑂𐐮𐑌.

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see

Origin

From the Book of Mormon, in which the word is said to mean honey bee in the language of the Jaredites.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Deseret. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Deseret

MLA

“Deseret.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Deseret. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Deseret,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Deseret.

Source: Deseret on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.