vacancy

noun va·can·cy \ ˈvā-kən(t)-sē \

Updated on: 22 Apr 2018

Definition of vacancy

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

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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 of vacancy from the Web

For the fiscal year that begins May 1, the budget carries over funding from the current fiscal year budget to fill five patrol officer vacancies, but also allocates about $460,000 for three additional patrol officers as well as a police commander.

— mike nolan, Daily Southtown, "New Tinley Park budget has more money for cops," 18 Apr. 2018
Currently the Central Intelligence Agency director, Mr. Pompeo also portrayed himself as a counterpoint to Mr. Tillerson, vowing to improve morale at the State Department, fill longstanding vacancies and empower career diplomats.

— michael r. gordon and nancy a. youssef, WSJ, "Mike Pompeo Promises Not to Be a ‘Yes Man’," 12 Apr. 2018
McConnell and others have complained that Democrats are abusing the practice, using it to stymie Trump's right to fill vacancies with his nominees.

— dan merica, CNN, "As controversy looms, Trump looks to pack the courts with conservatives," 10 Apr. 2018
Propose a constitutional amendment to eliminate special elections to fill legislative vacancies during the last two years of a term.

— bob gathany, AL.com, "Storm damage in Limestone County near Ardmore, Alabama," 20 Mar. 2018
President Donald Trump spoke on the campaign trail of filling three or four vacancies during his term, which is extremely unlikely absent a tragedy.

— matt ford, The New Republic, "Republicans are wishcasting Justice Kennedy’s retirement again.," 9 Mar. 2018
Gallion, who could not be reached for comment Tuesday morning, filed as a replacement candidate prior to a 5 p.m. Monday deadline, which the State Board of Elections set as part of its election schedule to fill vacancies after the filing deadline.

— david anderson, The Aegis, "State GOP selects candidate to run for Sen. Norman's seat," 6 Mar. 2018
In most years, there are scores of special elections around the country to fill vacancies in statehouses and Congress.

— trip gabriel and jess bidgood, New York Times, "Sexual Misconduct Spurs New Elections: The #MeToo Races," 20 Feb. 2018
Though many small hotels have used Airbnb for years to fill vacancies, the initiative will provide more support to these kinds of businesses.

— Sunset, "Your Next Airbnb Booking? At a B&B," 22 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vacancy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.