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empty
(redirected from emptiest)

   Also found in: Medical, Idioms 0.01 sec.
emp·ty  (mpt)
adj. emp·ti·er, emp·ti·est
1.
a. Holding or containing nothing.
b. Mathematics Having no elements or members; null: an empty set.
2. Having no occupants or inhabitants; vacant: an empty chair; empty desert.
3. Lacking force or power: an empty threat.
4. Lacking purpose or substance; meaningless: an empty life.
5. Not put to use; idle: empty hours.
6. Needing nourishment; hungry: "More fierce and more inexorable far/Than empty tigers or the roaring sea" Shakespeare.
7. Devoid; destitute: empty of pity.
v. emp·tied, emp·ty·ing, emp·ties
v.tr.
1. To remove the contents of: emptied the dishwasher.
2. To transfer or pour off completely: empty the ashes into a pail.
3. To unburden; relieve: empty oneself of doubt.
v.intr.
1. To become empty: The theater emptied after the performance.
2. To discharge its contents: The river empties into a bay.
n. pl. emp·ties Informal
An empty container.

[Middle English, from Old English mtig, vacant, unoccupied, from metta, leisure; see med- in Indo-European roots.]

empti·ly adv.
empti·ness n.
Synonyms: empty, vacant, blank, void, vacuous, bare1, barren
These adjectives mean without contents that could or should be present. Empty applies to what is wholly lacking contents or substance: an empty room; empty promises.
Vacant refers to what is without an occupant or incumbent, or to what is without intelligence or thought: a vacant auditorium; a vacant stare.
Blank stresses the absence of something, especially on a surface, that would convey meaning or content: blank pages.
Void applies to what is free from or completely destitute of discernible content: gibberish void of all meaning.
Vacuous describes what is as devoid of substance as a vacuum is: led a vacuous life.
Something that is bare lacks surface covering (a bare head) or detail (the bare facts); the word also denotes the condition of being stripped of contents or furnishings: a bare closet.
Barren literally and figuratively stresses lack of productivity: barren land; writing barren of insight. See Also Synonyms at vain.
Word History: In Old English Ic eom mtig could mean "I am empty," "I am unoccupied," or "I am unmarried." The sense "unoccupied, at leisure," which did not survive Old English, points to the derivation of mtig from the Old English word metta, "leisure, rest." The word metta may in turn go back to the Germanic root *mt-, meaning "ability, leisure." In any case, Old English mtig also meant "vacant," a sense that was destined to take over the meaning of the word. Empty, the Modern English descendant of Old English mtig, has come to have the sense "idle," so that one can speak of empty leisure.

empty
Adjective
[-tier, -tiest]
1. containing nothing
2. without inhabitants; unoccupied
3. without purpose, substance, or value: he contemplated yet another empty weekend
4. insincere or trivial: empty words
5. Informal drained of energy or emotion
6. Maths, logic (of a set or class) containing no members
Verb
[-ties, -tying, -tied]
1. to make or become empty
2. to remove from something: they emptied out the remains of the tin of paint
Noun
pl -ties
an empty container, esp. a bottle [Old English ǣmtig]
emptiness n
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.emptyempty - a container that has been emptied; "return all empties to the store"
container - any object that can be used to hold things (especially a large metal boxlike object of standardized dimensions that can be loaded from one form of transport to another)
Verb1.empty - make void or empty of contents; "Empty the box"; "The alarm emptied the building"
alter, change, modify - cause to change; make different; cause a transformation; "The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city"; "The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue"
bail - empty (a vessel) by bailing
clean out, clear out - empty completely; "We cleaned out all the drawers"
bleed - drain of liquid or steam; "bleed the radiators"; "the mechanic bled the engine"
evacuate - empty completely; "evacuate the bottle"
evacuate - create a vacuum in (a bulb, flask, reaction vessel)
eviscerate - remove the contents of; "eviscerate the stomach"
void - clear (a room, house, place) of occupants or empty or clear (a place or receptacle) of something; "The chemist voided the glass bottle"; "The concert hall was voided of the audience"
clear - remove the occupants of; "Clear the building"
clear - rid of instructions or data; "clear a memory buffer"
exhaust - use up the whole supply of; "We have exhausted the food supplies"
knock out - empty (as of tobacco) by knocking out; "knocked out a pipe"
drain - empty of liquid; drain the liquid from; "We drained the oil tank"
core out, hollow out, hollow - remove the interior of; "hollow out a tree trunk"
gut - empty completely; destroy the inside of; "Gut the building"
fill, fill up, make full - make full, also in a metaphorical sense; "fill a container"; "fill the child with pride"
2.empty - become empty or void of its content; "The room emptied"
change state, turn - undergo a transformation or a change of position or action; "We turned from Socialism to Capitalism"; "The people turned against the President when he stole the election"
flow away, flow off - flow off or away gradually; "The water flowed off from the pipe"
fill, fill up - become full; "The pool slowly filled with water"; "The theater filled up slowly"
3.emptyempty - leave behind empty; move out of; "You must vacate your office by tonight"
go forth, leave, go away - go away from a place; "At what time does your train leave?"; "She didn't leave until midnight"; "The ship leaves at midnight"
4.empty - remove; "Empty the water"
remove, take away, withdraw, take - remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract; "remove a threat"; "remove a wrapper"; "Remove the dirty dishes from the table"; "take the gun from your pocket"; "This machine withdraws heat from the environment"
unlade, unload, offload - take the load off (a container or vehicle); "unload the truck"; "offload the van"
5.empty - excrete or discharge from the body
egest, excrete, eliminate, pass - eliminate from the body; "Pass a kidney stone"
suction - empty or clean (a body cavity) by the force of suction; "suction the uterus in an abortion"
Adj.1.empty - holding or containing nothing; "an empty glass"; "an empty room"; "full of empty seats"; "empty hours"
full - containing as much or as many as is possible or normal; "a full glass"; "a sky full of stars"; "a full life"; "the auditorium was full to overflowing"
2.emptyempty - devoid of significance or point; "empty promises"; "a hollow victory"; "vacuous comments"
meaningless, nonmeaningful - having no meaning or direction or purpose; "a meaningless endeavor"; "a meaningless life"; "a verbose but meaningless explanation"
3.empty - needing nourishment; "after skipped lunch the men were empty by suppertime"; "empty-bellied children"
hungry - feeling hunger; feeling a need or desire to eat food; "a world full of hungry people"
4.empty - emptied of emotion; "after the violent argument he felt empty"
drained - emptied or exhausted of (as by drawing off e.g. water or other liquid); "a drained marsh"; "a drained tank"; "a drained and apathetic old man...not caring any longer about anything"

empty
adjective 1. bare, clear, abandoned, deserted, vacant, free, void, desolate, destitute, uninhabited, unoccupied, waste, unfurnished, untenanted, without contents << OPPOSITE full
verb 5. clear, drain, gut, void, unload, pour out, unpack, unburden, remove the contents of << OPPOSITE fill
6. exhaust, consume the contents of, void, deplete, use up << OPPOSITE replenish
Translations
Spanish empty [ˈɛmptɪ] adjvacío; [street, area] → desierto; [threat] → vano
n (= bottle) → envase m
vtvaciar [+ place]; dejar vacío
vivaciarse; [house] → quedar(se) vacío or desocupado; [place] → quedar(se) desierto;
to empty into [river] → desembocar en

French empty [ˈɛmptɪ] adjvide; [street, area] → désert(e); [threat, promise] → en l'air, vain(e)
n (= bottle) → bouteille f vide
vtvider
vise vider; [liquid] → s'écouler;
on an empty stomach → à jeun;
to empty into [river] → se jeter dans, se déverser dans

German empty [ˈɛmptɪ] adjleer;
(house, room) → leer stehend;
(space) → frei
vtleeren;
(place, house etc) → räumen
visich leeren;
(liquid) → abfließen;
(river) → münden;
on an empty stomach → auf nüchternen Magen;
to empty into (river) → münden or sich ergießen in +acc

Italian empty [ˈɛmptɪ] adjvuoto/a; [street, area] → deserto/a; [threat, promise] → vano/a
n (bottle) → vuoto
vtvuotare
vivuotarsi; [liquid] → scaricarsi;
on an empty stomach → a stomaco vuoto;
to empty into [river] → gettarsi in

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