hollow. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.

hollow

SYLLABICATION:	hol·low
PRONUNCIATION:	hl
ADJECTIVE:	Inflected forms: hol·low·er, hol·low·est 1. Having a cavity, gap, or space within: a hollow wall. 2. Deeply indented or concave; sunken: “His bearded face already has a set, hollow look” (Conor Cruise O'Brien). 3. Without substance or character: a hollow person. See synonyms at vain. 4. Devoid of truth or validity; specious: “Theirs is at best a hollow form of flattery” (Annalyn Swan). 5. Having a reverberating, sepulchral sound: hollow footsteps.
NOUN:	1. A cavity, gap, or space: a hollow behind a wall. 2. An indented or concave surface or area. 3. A void; an emptiness: a hollow in one's life. 4. A small valley between mountains.
VERB:	Inflected forms: hol·lowed, hol·low·ing, hol·lows
TRANSITIVE VERB:	1. To make hollow: hollow out a pumpkin. 2. To scoop or form by making concave: hollow out a nest in the sand.
INTRANSITIVE VERB:	To become hollow or empty.
ETYMOLOGY:	Middle English holwe, holowe, from holgh, hole, burrow (influenced by hole, hollow), from Old English holh. See kel-¹ in Appendix I.
OTHER FORMS:	hollow·ly —ADVERB hollow·ness —NOUN


The American Heritage^® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.