hollow-eyed

American

[hol-oh-ahyd] / ˈhɒl oʊˌaɪd /

adjective

having sunken eyes.

hollow-eyed British

adjective

with the eyes appearing to be sunk into the face, as from excessive fatigue

"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

Etymology

Origin of hollow-eyed

First recorded in 1520–30

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

hollow-eyed

The pictures show a pallid, hollow-eyed man, resembling Poe, who’s sitting by the fire in his dressing gown when there comes a gentle “rapping, rapping” at the door.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2025

School district lawyers, contrary to popular belief and Disney Channel sitcoms are not hollow-eyed pencil pushers, who live to squelch liberty and creativity in red tape and regulation.

From Slate ● Jun. 29, 2022

But by 14, Dylan is hollow-eyed, staring blankly at the camera.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 20, 2022

At the Minsk airport, Iraqi families slumped hollow-eyed in seats as the plane was delayed several hours.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 21, 2021

When Ugwu saw the hollow-eyed men with the dirt-smeared clothes, he knew right away that he should take Baby away, shield her.

From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023