[542458]

The person you’re replying to is correct - “desert” is in some contexts an old word that’s pronounced like “dessert” but spelled with one “s” that means “the punishment that one deserves”.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/just-deserts-o...

[lnx01]

Also, "desert" as the present tense of "deserted". As in "All my friends have deserted me." Or, "The Sgt. Major punished the deserter."