hollow
noun · adjective · verb · adverb
Simple meaning
A cavity or space in something.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
hahlohSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈhɑloʊ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A cavity or space in something
“Hunger had caused the hollows in their cheeks.”
figuratively
A feeling of emptiness.
A sunken area on a surface.
adjective
of something solid
Having an empty space or cavity inside.
figuratively
Without substance; having no real or significant worth; meaningless.
of a sound
Distant, eerie; echoing, reverberating, as if in a hollow space; dull, muffled; often low-pitched.
Concave; gaunt; sunken.
figuratively
Insincere, devoid of validity; specious.
verb
To call or urge by shouting; to hollo.
transitive
To make a hole in something; to excavate
adverb
colloquial
Completely, as part of the phrase beat hollow or beat all hollow.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A cavity or space in something
Used this way, hollow is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“Hunger had caused the hollows in their cheeks.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “hollow in …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Natural pattern: hollow in …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use hollow
- “Hunger had caused the hollows in their cheeks.”noun
- “He built himself a cabin in a hollow high up in the Appalachians.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Remove the interior of.
An abnormal inward (forward) curvature of the vertebral column.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: having an empty space or cavity inside
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.