EMPTINESS Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

emptiness

noun

Definition of emptiness

as in hunger

a need or desire for food the emptiness that usually sets in about three o'clock in the afternoon

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in void

empty space there in the vast emptiness of the desert was a long-abandoned jeep

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in vacancy

the quality or state of being empty the emptiness of the interior of the isolated house just made it seem all the more eerie

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of emptiness The problem isn’t the characterization, since the surgeon is extremely well drawn and Văncică’s performance picks up on both the overall inner emptiness and the yearning for something more. — Jay Weissberg, Variety, 14 Aug. 2026 If the early universe obeyed this rule, our modern cosmos would be devoid of substance, just energy fields rippling eternally through emptiness. — Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 13 Aug. 2026 The world’s complexity and emptiness simultaneously filled the church. — Classical Music Critic, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026 Gone are the extended multi-part suites and intricate guitar workouts, replaced by slight, tender melodies engulfed in a striking emptiness. — Sam Goldner, Pitchfork, 19 July 2026 Years of waiting for his return were answered with disappointing emptiness, a frustration that could be permanent if McGregor never sets foot in another octagon. — Mark Puleo, New York Times, 12 July 2026 Here, emptiness is not vacancy, but composure, proportion and room for thought. — Spencer Elliott, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026 Not even foundations are visible, and a long gravel road toward that part of the island leads past occasional farms and vast swaths of emptiness and then, finally, to a muddy riverbank thick with mosquitos. — Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026 He was used to being alone without Robin and postretirement but being alone in the interminable stretch of predawn hours was a different sort of emptiness. — Danielle Parker, CBS News, 30 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for emptiness

Noun

But that disappointment comes with a whole heck of a lot of hunger for Sanchez, a senior defender who earned all-state honors last fall.

— Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026
Here are details on tiny frozen pancakes that promise to quash hunger and please even the pickiest of eaters and those that are likely to end up as back-seat crumbles.

— Jolene Thym, Mercury News, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of hunger

Noun

But his sudden death on July 11 due to an aortic tear created a void.

— Terry Collins, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026
In Wolf’s Belly, Little Red Riding Hood and Grandmother find themselves in a magical void with other fairytale characters that the wolf has gobbled up, including the Boy who Cried Wolf and a fourth Little Pig.

— Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of void

Noun

By my count, 16 of the 28 storefronts lining the glossy pedestrian speedway are empty — a 57 percent vacancy rate.

— Anne Kadet, Curbed, 24 Aug. 2026
One data center company, Aligned, is tearing down four high-vacancy office buildings in town, including the former ADP payroll building, to build new data center space.

— Alex Nitkin, Chicago Tribune, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of vacancy

Noun

This includes the skeletal muscles that Rocky uses to sprint and box, the muscles that allow your heart to beat, the muscles that squeeze food through your stomach and intestines, and the muscles that open up your airways to breathe.

— Linda M. Boland, The Conversation, 21 Aug. 2026
Your friend revealed something to you that turns your stomach.

— Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of stomach

Noun

Turning the quantum vacuum into a control knob The challenge is that vacuum fluctuations are normally far too weak to noticeably influence the collective behavior of a macroscopic material.

— Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 22 Aug. 2026
The American public distrusts its legal institutions and media outlets, creating a vacuum in which wild conjecture can bloom.

— Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of vacuum

Noun

There had been a portrait that may have depicted the real-life Billy, and it could have been used, but Ondaatje was advised by his poet friend bpNichol to leave the space blank.

— Amitava Kumar, New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2026
Baffled residents, who don’t know whether their data have been stolen or compromised, have been trying their best to fill in the blanks.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2026

Definition of blank

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empties

emptiness

empty

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Style

“Emptiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/emptiness. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of emptiness

noun

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