1
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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in void
empty space
there in the vast emptiness of the desert was a long-abandoned jeep
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in devoid
lacking contents that could or should be present
the refrigerator is empty, so we'll have to eat out
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in meaningless
having no meaning
spare me your empty apologies because if you were truly sorry, you'd change
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in worthless
having no usefulness
an empty task that was assigned just to keep us busy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
all of the leads in the missing-person case were turning up empty
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in blank
not expressing any emotion
the speaker looked out at a crowd of empty faces
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
Kymberlee Montgomery, The Conversation, 14 Apr. 2025
On a rainy morning, the restaurant, made up of a few four-seat tables leading to the stage area, was mostly empty.
—Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 21 Apr. 2025
Just need to make sure Wednesday hasn't emptied the pool first.
—Toria Sheffield, People.com, 19 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for emptiness
Adjective
Imagine nearly every seat in Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center − over 20,000 seats − are empty.
—Kymberlee Montgomery, The Conversation, 14 Apr. 2025
On a rainy morning, the restaurant, made up of a few four-seat tables leading to the stage area, was mostly empty.
—Eduardo Cuevas, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
Verb
The Heat also again went with a four-man bench rotation of Haywood Highsmith, Mitchell, Robinson and Kyle Anderson before emptying its bench late in the lopsided loss.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 21 Apr. 2025
Just need to make sure Wednesday hasn't emptied the pool first.
—Toria Sheffield, People.com, 19 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for emptiness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for emptiness
Noun
-
But intrepid travelers have not relented: The hunger to be first remains a powerful driver.—
Tori Latham,
Robb Report,
26 Apr. 2025
-
Hopefully it’s instilled a hunger for cooperation and community in some young players.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
23 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
But the intended fix, local homelike centers, hasn't filled the void.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Apr. 2025
-
The departures of Kobe Johnson and Lazar Stefanovic have created a void that Dailey might fill.—
Houston Mitchell,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Apartment industry officials in Colorado have defended the use of algorithms as a means to manage vacancy rates and lower prices.—
Seth Klamann,
Denver Post,
29 Apr. 2025
-
The model includes hiring additional background investigators, expanding academy classes and increasing advertisements to match the need for filling vacancies.—
Thomas Goodwin Smith,
Baltimore Sun,
23 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Banking has become functionally correct but emotionally devoid, with the industry swimming in a sea of sameness.—
Michael Abbott,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
-
Delle, devoid for so long from its intrinsic need for social interaction might be filling in the gaps by talking to himself.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
14 Feb. 2023
Adjective
-
Managing change proactively rather than reactively means staying hungry, staying humble and staying committed to the long-term vision—especially when things are going well.—
Robert Balentine,
Forbes.com,
30 Apr. 2025
-
The Kings didn’t push to create offense, with only 15 third-period shot attempts (only six of which went on goal) and instead focused on fending off a hungry Oilers team.—
Shayna Goldman,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
And the testing is meaningless unless people are also being connected to treatment as quickly as possible.—
Jennifer Lotito,
Forbes.com,
23 Apr. 2025
-
Shaking your fist at the fools who started the First World War and condemned millions to a meaningless death seems jejune; historians teach us to say that the generals did their best under impossible conditions.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Removing or reforming colleges with chronically poor outcomes means fewer borrowers entering repayment with no degree or worthless credentials.—
Shahar Ziv,
Forbes.com,
24 Apr. 2025
-
Settlers who actually traveled to Florida to inspect their purchases were likely to be greeted by muddy parcels of worthless swampland overrun with snakes and mosquitoes, miles away from anything resembling civilization.—
Greg Daugherty,
Smithsonian Magazine,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
But the Supreme Court denied the court order and requests to President Donald Trump from family, supporters and her attorney were unsuccessful.—
Nicole Acosta,
People.com,
19 Apr. 2025
-
Meanwhile, Min and Chris’ closest friends, Kelly Marie Tran’s Angela, a research scientist, and Lily Gladstone’s Lee, an Indigenous community organizer, have been struggling to conceive a child; Lee has just found out that her second round of IVF has been unsuccessful.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
18 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Emptiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/emptiness. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share