I. ˈhä(ˌ)lō, -_lə often -_ləw+V adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English holwe, holg, holh, from holg, holh hole, den, from Old English holh hole, hollow — more at hole
1.
a. : constituting a depression or a low or excavated place
a hollow spot in the road
the force of the meteor's fall made a hollow place in the open plain
: curved or rounded inward : concave
the dish was covered by a hollow piece of metal
: sunken
hollow temples
b. : marked by hollows or sunken areas
his face became gaunter and more hollow with each passing year
c. of the sea : having deep-troughed waves
d. : having a concave face or surface — used of various tools especially when designed for curved work
hollow adz
hollow auger
hollow punch
2.
a.
(1) : having an empty space or cavity within : not solid
a hollow tree
hollow sphere
(2) of a two-dimensional figure : being in outline only : not filled in : consisting partly of unfilled spaces
hollow letters
b. : empty
a hollow walnut
a hollow feeling in the stomach
c.
(1) : devoid of worth, value, significance, or substance
a hollow victory
a hollow gain
the whole celebration seems strangely hollow and unreal — W.F.Hambly
the hollow position taken by the opposition
: lacking in qualities that give substance, worth, or moral or intellectual solidity
men of social significance but essentially hollow
(2) : devoid of any significant ideas, principles, or purposes
we are the hollow men — T.S.Eliot
a hollow generation of youths
d. : having hollow spaces in the interior ; especially : having a net area less than 75 percent of the gross area — used of a masonry unit (as a brick or building tile)
3.
a. : sounding or reverberating like a sound made in a cave or large empty enclosure : muffled and sepulchral : breathy and lacking in overtones : producing confused echoes
the car in the empty garage started with a hollow roar
the hollow echo of the monkeys' call — M.P.O'Connor
the hollow subdued sound of the wind outside — Robert Murphy
b. : making or being a sound of or as if of beating on a hollow enclosure
the hollow drumming of horses' hooves on the bridge
4. : marked by insincerity or lack of good faith
a hollow greeting to an enemy
a hollow promise
: false , deceitful , treacherous
a hollow heart
a hollow truce
talk about war aims sounded hollow to them — F.L.Allen
5. : complete , thorough
Synonyms: see vain
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English holwen, from holwe, adjective
transitive verb
1.
a. : to make hollow : form an indentation or concavity in — usually used with out
hollow out half of a coconut shell
hollowed a place out in the cliffside where he could hide
b. : to make concave or cause to be curved or rounded inward
the can cover must be cut in two, and each half so hollowed as to fit around the pipe — Emily Holt
the short double woolly scarf which you could hollow into a cap — Fred Majdalany
c.
(1) : to gouge, dig, or scrape the inside out of — usually used with out
hollowed out a stump and filled it with concrete
(2) : gut — often used with out
dozens of dead cities, their insides hollowed out by dynamite and fire — Norman Cousins
2. : to form by hollowing something out
rain barrels hollowed out from trees — Robert Shaplen
: excavate — usually used with out
engineers hollowed out a tunnel through the mountain
intransitive verb
: to become hollow
her cheeks hollowed suddenly as she sucked in her breath
III. noun
( -s )
Etymology: hollow (I)
1. : a low spot surrounded by elevations : a depressed or low part of a surface : concavity , channel , basin
driving down through the hollow in the road
the hollow of the hand
especially : a small valley : ravine , notch , dingle
2.
a. : an unfilled space within anything : cavity , hole
in the hollow of a tree
b. : an area marked by such a space or cavity
the horse buses rumble by, dropping a note as their hooves strike the hollow of the bridge — Times Literary Supplement
pounding on the hollow of the wall
IV. adverb
Etymology: hollow (I)
: hollowly
the attacks on him rang hollow because he had proved his honesty and integrity