Link Centre Dictionary

empty

US/ˈɛm(p).ti/ common
adjective (5) verb (5) noun (1)

adjective

1.

holding or containing nothing

  • “an empty glass”
  • “an empty room”
  • “full of empty seats”
  • “empty hours”
Antonyms
Similar
2.

devoid of significance or point

  • “empty promises”
  • “a hollow victory”
  • “vacuous comments”
Synonyms
Similar
3.

having nothing inside

  • “an empty sphere”
Similar
4.

needing nourishment

  • “after skipped lunch the men were empty by suppertime”
  • “empty-bellied children”
Synonyms
Similar
5.

emptied of emotion

  • “after the violent argument he felt empty”
Similar

verb

1.

make void or empty of contents

  • “Empty the box”
  • “The alarm emptied the building”
Antonyms
2.

become empty or void of its content

  • “The room emptied”
Synonyms
Antonyms
3.

leave behind empty; move out of

  • “You must vacate your office by tonight”
Synonyms
4.

remove

  • “Empty the water”
5.

excrete or discharge from the body

Synonyms

noun

1.

a container that has been emptied

  • “return all empties to the store”

Origin

From Middle English emty, amty, from Old English ǣmtiġ, ǣmettiġ (“vacant, empty, free, idle, unmarried”, literally “without must or obligation, leisurely”), from Proto-Germanic *uz- (“out”) + Proto-Germanic *mōtijô, *mōtô (“must, obligation, need”), *mōtiþô (“ability, accommodation”), from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“measure; to acquire, possess, be in command”). Related to Old English ġeǣmtigian (“to empty”), ǣmetta (“leisure”), mōtan (“can, to be allowed”). More at mote, meet. The interconsonantal excrescent p is a euphonic insertion dating from Middle English.

Phrases

  • empty set
  • empty the clip
  • empty the tank

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.