empty

empty
adj., v., & n.
—adj. (emptier, emptiest)
1 containing nothing.
2 (of a house etc.) unoccupied or unfurnished.
3 (of a transport vehicle etc.) without a load, passengers, etc.
4 a meaningless, hollow, insincere (empty threats; an empty gesture). b without substance or purpose (an empty existence).
5 colloq. hungry.
6 (foll. by of) devoid, lacking.
—v. (-ies, -ied)
1 tr. a make empty; remove the contents of. b (foll. by of) deprive of certain contents (emptied the room of its chairs).
2 tr. (often foll. by into) transfer (the contents of a container).
3 intr. become empty.
4 intr. (usu. foll. by into) (of a river) discharge itself (into the sea etc.).
—n. (pl. -ies) colloq. a container (esp. a bottle) left empty of its contents.
Phrases and idioms:
empty-handed
1 bringing or taking nothing.
2 having achieved or obtained nothing. empty-headed foolish; lacking common sense. empty-nester US either of a couple whose children have grown up and left home. on an empty stomach see STOMACH.
Derivatives:
emptily adv. emptiness n.
Etymology: OE aeligmtig, aeligmetig f. aeligmetta leisure

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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  • Empty — Emp ty (?; 215), a. [Compar. {Emptier}; superl. {Emptiest}.] [AS. emtig, [ae]mtig, [ae]metig, fr. [ae]mta, [ae]metta, quiet, leisure, rest; of uncertain origin; cf. G. emsig busy.] 1. Containing nothing; not holding or having anything within;… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • empty — adj 1 Empty, vacant, blank, void, vacuous mean lacking the contents that could or should be present. Something is empty which has nothing in it; something is vacant which is without an occupant, incumbent, tenant, inmate, or the person or thing… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • empty — [emp′tē] adj. emptier, emptiest [ME emti & (with intrusive p ) empti < OE æmettig, unoccupied, lit., at leisure < æmetta, leisure (< æ , without + base of motan, to have to: see MUST1) + ig, Y2] 1. containing nothing; having nothing in… …   English World dictionary

  • empty — ► ADJECTIVE (emptier, emptiest) 1) containing nothing; not filled or occupied. 2) having no meaning or likelihood of fulfilment: an empty threat. 3) having no value or purpose. ► VERB (empties, emptied) …   English terms dictionary

  • empty — c.1200, from O.E. æmettig at leisure, not occupied, unmarried, from æmetta leisure, from æ not + metta, from motan to have (see MIGHT (Cf. might)). The p is a euphonic insertion. Sense evolution from at leisure to empty is paralleled in several… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Empty — Emp ty, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Emptied}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Emptying}.] To deprive of the contents; to exhaust; to make void or destitute; to make vacant; to pour out; to discharge; as, to empty a vessel; to empty a well or a cistern. [1913 Webster]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • empty — [adj1] containing nothing abandoned, bare, barren, blank, clear, dead, deflated, depleted, desert, deserted, desolate, despoiled, destitute, devoid, dry, evacuated, exhausted, forsaken, godforsaken*, hollow, lacking, stark, unfilled, unfurnished …   New thesaurus

  • empty of — completely without (something) The arena was empty of spectators. The streets are now empty of traffic. • • • Main Entry: ↑empty …   Useful english dictionary

  • Empty — Emp ty, n.; pl. {Empties}. An empty box, crate, cask, etc.; used in commerce, esp. in transportation of freight; as, special rates for empties. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Empty — Emp ty, v. i. 1. To discharge itself; as, a river empties into the ocean. [1913 Webster] 2. To become empty. The chapel empties. B. Jonson. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • empty — index barren, baseless, consume, deficient, deplete, devoid, diminish, dissipate (expend foolishly), evacuate …   Law dictionary

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