vacancy

[ vey-kuh n-see ]

/ ˈveɪ kən si /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR vacancy ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural va·can·cies.

the state of being vacant; emptiness.

a vacant, empty, or unoccupied place, as untenanted lodgings or offices: This building still has no vacancies.

a gap; opening; breach.

an unoccupied position or office: a vacancy on the Supreme Court.

lack of thought or intelligence; vacuity: a look of utter vacancy.

Crystallography. (in a crystal) an imperfection resulting from an unoccupied lattice position.Compare interstitial(def 3).

Archaic. absence of activity; idleness.

Nearby words

Origin of vacancy

From the Medieval Latin word vacantia, dating back to 1570–80. See vacant, -ancy

Related formsnon·va·can·cy, noun, plural non·va·can·cies.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for vacancy

Not that a vacancy or appointments elsewhere in Washington may matter.
Kerry's Impromptu Meeting With Abbas|Andrea Stone|March 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
And if you want to see it get even worse, just wait until the president selects someone to fill the next Supreme Court vacancy.
Washington’s Endless Civil War|Robert Shrum|January 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST
But since the vacancy at the spy agency opened up, there are indications he may have had a change of heart.
Who Is John Brennan, the Man Touted to Be the Next CIA Director?|Daniel Klaidman|November 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Emanuel refused its call that a principal hire a laid-off teacher when three of them applied for a vacancy.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel Reaches Flawed Deal to End Chicago Teachers Strike|James Warren|September 19, 2012|DAILY BEAST

That ratio represents an improvement from the nadir of the recession, when there were 5.5 job seekers for every vacancy.
A Jobs Report With Not Enough Jobs|David Frum|March 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Unfortunately her first appearance in London had to be postponed for a year owing to the fact of there being no vacancy.
Carnival|Compton Mackenzie
Mr. Brewer afterwards received his Majesty's commission appointing him to the vacancy.
An Account of the English Colony in New South Wales, Vol. 1|David Collins
Then followed a long vacancy, highly prejudicial to the progress of the church, but a vacancy that European affairs caused.
The Catholic World, Vol. X, October 1869|Various
The boy, on the other screen, slumped back in his chair, his face relaxing into its customary expression of vacancy.
Last Enemy|Henry Beam Piper
Nothing could induce the bishop to fill up the vacancy at Hiram's Hospital caused by Mr. Harding's retirement.
The World's Greatest Books, Vol VIII|Arthur Mee and J.A. Hammerton, Eds.

British Dictionary definitions for vacancy

vacancy

/ (ˈveɪkənsɪ) /

noun plural -cies

the state or condition of being vacant or unoccupied; emptiness

an unoccupied post or officewe have a vacancy in the accounts department

an unoccupied room in a boarding house, hotel, etcput the "No Vacancies" sign in the window

lack of thought or intelligent awareness; inanityan expression of vacancy on one's face

physics a defect in a crystalline solid caused by the absence of an atom, ion, or molecule from its position in the crystal lattice

obsolete idleness or a period spent in idleness

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

Word Origin and History for vacancy

vacancy

c.1600, "state of being vacant," from Late Latin vacantia, from vacans (see vacant). Meaning "available room at a hotel" is recorded from 1953. Related: Vacancies.

vacancy

noun, plural va·can·cies.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of vacancy

Examples from the Web for vacancy

British Dictionary definitions for vacancy

vacancy

noun plural -cies

Word Origin and History for vacancy

vacancy