empty
containing nothing; having none of the usual or appropriate contents: an empty bottle.
having no occupant or occupants; vacant; unoccupied: an empty house.
without cargo or load: an empty wagon.
destitute of people or human activity: We walked along the empty streets of the city at night.
destitute of some quality or qualities; devoid (usually followed by of): Theirs is a life now empty of happiness.
without force, effect, or significance; hollow; meaningless: empty compliments; empty pleasures.
not employed in useful activity or work; idle: empty summer days.
hungry: I'm feeling rather empty—let's have lunch.
completely spent of emotion: The experience had left him with an empty heart.
to make empty; deprive of contents; discharge the contents of: to empty a bucket.
to discharge (contents): to empty the water out of a bucket.
to become empty: The room emptied rapidly after the lecture.
to discharge contents, as a river: The river empties into the sea.
Informal. something that is empty, as a box, bottle, or can: Throw the empties into the waste bin.
Origin of empty
1synonym study For empty
Other words for empty
Opposites for empty
Other words from empty
- emp·ti·a·ble, adjective
- emp·ti·er, noun
- emp·ti·ly, adverb
- emp·ti·ness, noun
- o·ver·emp·ty, adjective
- qua·si-emp·ty, adjective
- self-emp·ty·ing, adjective
- un·emp·tied, adjective
- un·emp·ty, adjective
Words Nearby empty
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use empty in a sentence
He defied the atheism of communism and the empty religious practices of Putinism.
Remembering the Russian Priest Who Fought the Orthodox Church | Cathy Young | December 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOtherwise, we will be but celebrating an empty holiday, missing its true meaning altogether.
Later schools empty out children, who race over to play games in the shade.
The Life and Hard Times Of The Family A Cuban Defector Left Behind | Brin-Jonathan Butler | December 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOn Thursday, Russian bloggers published pictures of empty shelves in stores that once sold electric goods.
After His Disastrous Annual Press Conference, Putin Needs A Hug | Anna Nemtsova | December 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIf they are in fact linked to North Korea, the threat may not be as empty as people think.
Herein he found an empty stall that was dark enough not to be seen, and still afforded sufficient light to read in.
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxWhen the funeral was over, and they returned to their desolate home, at the sight of the empty cradle Ramona broke down.
Ramona | Helen Hunt JacksonA quite young child will, for example, pretend to do something, as to take an empty cup and carry out the semblance of drinking.
Children's Ways | James SullyFor his heart seemed alternately full and empty; all the life he had was centred there.
The Wave | Algernon BlackwoodIn Flanders, he says, they would never attack with empty limbers behind them; they would wait till they were full up.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I | Ian Hamilton
British Dictionary definitions for empty
/ (ˈɛmptɪ) /
containing nothing
without inhabitants; vacant or unoccupied
carrying no load, passengers, etc
without purpose, substance, or value: an empty life
insincere or trivial: empty words
not expressive or vital; vacant: she has an empty look
informal hungry
(postpositive foll by of) devoid; destitute: a life empty of happiness
informal drained of energy or emotion: after the violent argument he felt very empty
maths logic (of a set or class) containing no members
philosophy logic (of a name or description) having no reference
to make or become empty
(when intr, foll by into) to discharge (contents)
(tr often foll by of) to unburden or rid (oneself): to empty oneself of emotion
an empty container, esp a bottle
Origin of empty
1Derived forms of empty
- emptiable, adjective
- emptier, noun
- emptily, adverb
- emptiness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with empty
In addition to the idioms beginning with empty
- empty calories
- empty nest
- empty suit
also see:
- glass is half full (half empty)
- running on empty
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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