EMPTY Synonyms: 314 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'empty' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of empty are blank , vacant , vacuous , and void . While all these words mean "lacking contents which could or should be present," empty suggests a complete absence of contents. // an empty bucket

Q: When might 'blank' be a better fit than 'empty'?

While in some cases nearly identical to empty , blank stresses the absence of any significant, relieving, or intelligible features on a surface. // a blank wall

Q: When could 'vacant' be used to replace 'empty'?

The words vacant and empty are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, vacant suggests an absence of appropriate contents or occupants. // a vacant apartment

Q: When is 'vacuous' a more appropriate choice than 'empty'?

Although the words vacuous and empty have much in common, vacuous suggests the emptiness of a vacuum and especially the lack of intelligence or significance. // a vacuous facial expression

Q: When would 'void' be a good substitute for 'empty'?

The meanings of void and empty largely overlap; however, void suggests absolute emptiness as far as the mind or senses can determine. // a statement void of meaning

empty 1 of 2

adjective

ˈem(p)-tē

Definition of empty

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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

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

as in worthless

having no usefulness an empty task that was assigned just to keep us busy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

as in blank

not expressing any emotion the speaker looked out at a crowd of empty faces

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

empty

2 of 2

verb

as in to evacuate

to remove the contents of empty the room before starting to paint the ceiling

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

fill
load

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective empty contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of empty are blank, vacant, vacuous, and void. While all these words mean "lacking contents which could or should be present," empty suggests a complete absence of contents.

an empty bucket

When might blank be a better fit than empty?

While in some cases nearly identical to empty, blank stresses the absence of any significant, relieving, or intelligible features on a surface.

a blank wall

When could vacant be used to replace empty?

The words vacant and empty are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, vacant suggests an absence of appropriate contents or occupants.

a vacant apartment

When is vacuous a more appropriate choice than empty?

Although the words vacuous and empty have much in common, vacuous suggests the emptiness of a vacuum and especially the lack of intelligence or significance.

a vacuous facial expression

When would void be a good substitute for empty?

The meanings of void and empty largely overlap; however, void suggests absolute emptiness as far as the mind or senses can determine.

a statement void of meaning

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 empty

Adjective

Jazz fusion keyboardist George Duke, however, plays wild splashes of melody on an electric piano in the empty spaces between Waits’s lines. — Al Shipley, SPIN, 9 Oct. 2026 Shohei Ohtani is scuffling at the plate, and so far the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar is coming up mostly empty in the postseason. — ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026

Verb

By the end of Monday night, Caesars Superdome had largely emptied, and the vast majority of remaining seats were filled with fans donning red. — Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 6 Oct. 2026 Urinary symptoms can include leaking, urgency, a weak stream or feeling unable to empty the bladder fully. — Emily Cegielski, Flow Space, 6 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for empty

Recent Examples of Synonyms for empty

Adjective

In a show mostly devoid of explicit messages, the sentiment surprised me.

— Max Norman, New Yorker, 25 June 2026
Players take on the role of a Ditto capable of mimicking its human trainer, and the Pokémon is thrown into a world devoid of humans.

— Gieson Cacho, Mercury News, 25 June 2026

Definition of devoid

Adjective

Last week, Google’s Project Suncatcher launched a refrigerator-sized satellite carrying four AI chips into orbit on a SpaceX rocket, in an early test of whether the technology behind today’s power-hungry data centers could someday operate in space.

— Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2026
The incident is indicative of a growing problem in the Asheville area, involving humans giving hungry bears easy access to a buffet of tasty trash, experts say.

— Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of hungry

Adjective

But San Francisco is now 4-0 with three wins by double digits and a fourth that would have been a nine-point win if not for a virtually meaningless late field goal last week.

— Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026
Functional performance has always been counted in throughput, cost per transaction and cycle time, and those measures become close to meaningless once the routine work runs itself.

— Charisma Glassman, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of meaningless

Adjective

Matter is never worthless, but assigning it a price does not necessarily make its environmental and social costs disappear.

— Edward D. Melillo, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2026
Fraud tools aren’t worthless, but too many merchants discover their limitations the hard way.

— Wayne Hamilton, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of worthless

Adjective

Lawsuits aiming to stop or slow the border wall projects have largely been unsuccessful.

— Rebecca Santana, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
In February 2024, Idaho also failed to put a prisoner to death by lethal injection — the first unsuccessful execution attempt in the state’s history.

— Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of unsuccessful

Adjective

The blank area, or the area not occupied by the author’s work, has almost the same importance in a book as that occupied by the ink used to print the text.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
Nearly six million people cast a blank or spoiled vote — including Alexandre Moreira, a 21-year-old university student.

— ABC News, ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of blank

Verb

Residents in central Gaza returned home to assess the damage caused by Israeli strikes after they had been warned to evacuate the day before.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2026
Jalisco state suspended classes on Friday and Monday in 22 coastal municipalities and began evacuating dozens of people from at-risk areas.

— ABC News, ABC News, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of evacuate

Adjective

Pollinators and birds have found a welcoming haven here, is a spot that was previously barren, rocky ground.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
The 80-kilometer stretch between Abu Dhabi and Dubai — a barren expanse of farms, factories, warehouses, and not much else — is now drawing multibillion-dollar property projects.

— Manal Albarakati, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of barren

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Style

“Empty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/empty. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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adjective

verb

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