vacancy

noun

va·​can·​cy ˈvā-kən(t)-sē 

plural vacancies

1

: a vacant office, post, or tenancy

2

a

: a vacating of an office, post, or piece of property

b

: the time such office or property is vacant

3

: physical or mental inactivity or relaxation : idleness

4

: empty space : void

specifically : an unoccupied site for an atom or ion in a crystal

5

: the state of being vacant : vacuity

6

archaic : an interval of leisure

Synonyms of vacancy

• emptiness
• void

Examples of vacancy in a Sentence

School administrators are trying to fill vacancies before the beginning of the school year.

There were no vacancies at the hotel.

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s a new vacancy on Miami-Dade County Public School’s governing board. —Austin Horn june 9, Miami Herald, 9 June 2026

The department has roughly 750 employees, with a vacancy rate of about 8%, according to city officials. —Ethan Varian, Mercury News, 9 June 2026

Edmondson, a former City Council member, was appointed in 2023 to fill a vacancy left by Councilmember Barry Leonard. —Julie Gallant, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2026

The bill was submitted to Congress a day after veteran naval officer Frank Garcia was sworn in as assistant secretary of state for African affairs, ending a lengthy vacancy atop the Africa bureau. —Yinka Adegoke, semafor.com, 8 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

vac(ant) + -ancy, in part after Medieval Latin vacantia

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 6

Kids Definition

vacancy

noun

va·​can·​cy ˈvā-kən-sē 

plural vacancies

1

: something (as an office or hotel room) that is vacant

2

: empty space

3

: the state of being vacant