in a vacuum

idiom

: separated from outside events or influences
The group was operating in a vacuum, cut off from the rest of the world.
The city's riots did not happen in a vacuum. They were caused by recent political events.

Examples of in a vacuum in a Sentence

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These shifts have not happened in a vacuum, says Richardson, but are more a culmination of trends over the past five years. Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 11 Dec. 2025 In a world that’s so anti-fat, decisions around weight don’t happen in a vacuum, Hanson said. Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 6 Dec. 2025 The researchers first blended commercial honey with water and stored it in a vacuum to remove air bubbles. Perri Thaler, IEEE Spectrum, 27 Nov. 2025 Europe’s retreat from biomedical innovation did not occur in a vacuum, and neither would America’s. Michael Jäger, Boston Herald, 22 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for in a vacuum

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“In a vacuum.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in%20a%20vacuum. Accessed 17 Dec. 2025.

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