hollow
having a space or cavity inside; not solid; empty: a hollow sphere.
having a depression or concavity: a hollow surface.
sunken, as the cheeks or eyes.
(of sound) not resonant; dull, muffled, or deep: a hollow voice.
without real or significant worth; meaningless: a hollow victory.
insincere or false: hollow compliments.
hungry; having an empty feeling: I feel absolutely hollow, so let's eat.
an empty space within anything; a hole, depression, or cavity.
a valley: They took the sheep to graze in the hollow.
Foundry. a concavity connecting two surfaces otherwise intersecting at an obtuse angle.
to make hollow (often followed by out): to hollow out a log.
to form by making something hollow (often followed by out): to hollow a place in the sand;boats hollowed out of logs.
to become hollow.
in a hollow manner: The politician's accusations rang hollow.
Idioms about hollow
beat all hollow, to surpass or outdo completely: His performance beat the others all hollow.: Also beat hollow.
Origin of hollow
1Other words for hollow
Other words from hollow
- hol·low·ly, adverb
- hol·low·ness, noun
- half-hol·low, adjective
- un·hol·low, adjective
- un·hol·lowed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for hollow
/ (ˈhɒləʊ) /
having a hole, cavity, or space within; not solid
having a sunken area; concave
recessed or deeply set: hollow cheeks
(of sounds) as if resounding in a hollow place
without substance or validity
hungry or empty
insincere; cynical
a hollow leg or hollow legs the capacity to eat or drink a lot without ill effects
beat someone hollow British informal to defeat someone thoroughly and convincingly
a cavity, opening, or space in or within something
a depression or dip in the land
to make or become hollow
to form (a hole, cavity, etc) or (of a hole, etc) to be formed
Origin of hollow
1Derived forms of hollow
- hollowly, adverb
- hollowness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with hollow
see beat the pants off (hollow).
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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