Crossword Genius

Does, perhaps, at night appear lonely (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

desolate

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'lonely' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'does perhaps at night appear' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
an anagram of 'does' is 'deso' which is located in the answer.
'at' is present in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for desolate that I've seen before include "alone" , "Barren" , "Miserable" , "extremely sad" , "Forlorn and unhappy" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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