1
as in hunger
a need or desire for food
the emptiness that usually sets in about three o'clock in the afternoon
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2
as in void
empty space
there in the vast emptiness of the desert was a long-abandoned jeep
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3
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
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1
as in devoid
lacking contents that could or should be present
the refrigerator is empty, so we'll have to eat out
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2
as in hungry
feeling a desire or need for food
as the long car trip wore on, we all started to feel a little empty
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3
as in meaningless
having no meaning
spare me your empty apologies because if you were truly sorry, you'd change
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4
as in worthless
having no usefulness
an empty task that was assigned just to keep us busy
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5
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
all of the leads in the missing-person case were turning up empty
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6
as in blank
not expressing any emotion
the speaker looked out at a crowd of empty faces
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of emptiness
Jim Tschetter, Outdoor Life, 27 Aug. 2025
Israelis perhaps will awaken to the emptiness and absurdity of their military victories.
—Hussein Agha, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
How love rearranges itself and reappears after an empty night or five.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
Alyssa Hui-Anderson, Verywell Health, 8 Sep. 2025
With the Hurricanes in control, leading 35-3 in the second half, Cristobal emptied the bench and let the program’s future shine.
—Andre Fernandez, Miami Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for emptiness
Noun
Fog had moved in, transforming The Gorge into a sea of haunting emptiness.
—Jim Tschetter, Outdoor Life, 27 Aug. 2025
Israelis perhaps will awaken to the emptiness and absurdity of their military victories.
—Hussein Agha, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Schools saw classrooms empty overnight.
—Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
How love rearranges itself and reappears after an empty night or five.
—Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
The researchers also modeled gastroparesis, a condition where the stomach empties more slowly, often due to diabetes or viral infections.
—Alyssa Hui-Anderson, Verywell Health, 8 Sep. 2025
With the Hurricanes in control, leading 35-3 in the second half, Cristobal emptied the bench and let the program’s future shine.
—Andre Fernandez, Miami Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for emptiness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for emptiness
Noun
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Already, leading experts on hunger have declared a famine in Gaza City due to Israeli restrictions on aid.—
Aya Batrawy,
NPR,
5 Sep. 2025
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Separately, Biden thrice designated Haiti for Temporary Protected Status in the aftermath of the murder of President Jovenel Moise, a devastating earthquake, mass internal displacement, widespread gang violence, chronic hunger and extreme impoverishment.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Regular Israelis unhesitatingly stepped up to fill the void.—
Ron Scherf,
Time,
5 Sep. 2025
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With limited reporting coming out of Gaza, films are filling a void.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
From there, council would proceed with the normal process to fill a vacancy.—
Nick Sullivan,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Sep. 2025
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To conduct these surveys, the office sent questionnaires about vacancies to each of the 139 facilities.—
Natalie Eilbert,
jsonline.com,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Banking has become functionally correct but emotionally devoid, with the industry swimming in a sea of sameness.—
Michael Abbott,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
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That devoid ingredient hindered things exponentially.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Feb. 2024
Adjective
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The freezing rain then traps lichen under a thick layer of ice where hungry reindeer can’t reach the food, according to Anna Skarin, a reindeer husbandry expert and Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences professor.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
7 Sep. 2025
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These facilities, dense with high-performance servers and cooling systems, are among the most power-hungry assets in the country.—
Robert Rapier,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The Russo-Ukrainian war, and the Israel-Iran conflict have both shown that sophistication alone is meaningless if delivered in teaspoon doses.—
Amir Husain,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
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My worry is that AI use becomes ubiquitous enough that the label becomes meaningless—like saying a house was built with a pneumatic brad nailer versus a hammer.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The energy department said wind and solar capacity is 'worthless' without sunlight or wind.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
9 Sep. 2025
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Overnight, many of those owners saw their wealth erased — their principal assets rendered worthless.—
Max Klaver,
Miami Herald,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The new complaint was filed 20 years after Burrowes first claimed in an unsuccessful civil case that Combs may have put out a hit on Shakur and Knight.—
Gina Barton,
USA Today,
7 Sep. 2025
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All have been unsuccessful due to his status as a suspect in multiple violent crimes.—
Stephanie Nolasco,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Emptiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/emptiness. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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