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

• black hole
• blank
• blankness
• emptiness
• vacuity
• 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

Cooper also brought up the passing of Proposition 36, funding for courthouse staff and a significant vacancy rate among the department. —Emma Hall, Sacbee.com, 6 June 2025

National Guard members were concentrated primarily in facilities in the north and in the Panhandle, where vacancy rates have been disproportionately high. —Romy Ellenbogen, Miami Herald, 4 June 2025

By April, nearly half of weather service forecast offices had 20% vacancy rates. —Graham Underwood, Arkansas Online, 4 June 2025

As of the first quarter, the vacancy rate sits at 22.4%, according to an April report from commercial real estate firm JLL. —Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 3 June 2025

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