den vs desert

den

noun
  • A squalid or wretched place; a haunt. 

  • Synonym of fort (“structure improvised from furniture, etc. for playing games.”) 

  • A comfortable room not used for formal entertaining. 

  • A group of Cub Scouts of the same age who work on projects together. 

  • A small cavern or hollow place in the side of a hill, or among rocks; especially, a cave used by a wild animal for shelter or concealment. 

verb
  • To ensconce or hide oneself in (or as in) a den. 

desert

noun
  • Any barren place or situation. 

  • That which is deserved or merited; a just punishment or reward. 

  • A barren area of land or desolate terrain, especially one with little water or vegetation; a wasteland. 

adj
  • Usually of a place: abandoned, deserted, or uninhabited. 

verb
  • 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. 

  • To leave one's duty or post, especially to leave a military or naval unit without permission. 

How often have the words den and desert occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )