hollow1 adjectivehollow2 nounhollow3 verb
hollowhol‧low1 /ˈhɒləʊ $ ˈhɑː-/ ●●○ adjective 
WORD ORIGINhollow1
Origin:
Old English holh ‘hole, hollow place’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- hollow threats
- The bread should sound hollow when you tap the bottom.
- The walls are made of hollow concrete blocks.
- A well-shaped grey head leaned to peer at her out of concerned hollow eyes, whose colour she could not determine.
- After all, the only connections between the two were a metal chain and a hollow rubber tube.
- But there was something hollow about the whole experience.
- But they sounded more hollow than they had done a year earlier, and were certainly less widespread.
- How can I insulate the hollow door?
- The hollow eyes on the pillow were filling with tears.
THESAURUSwith nothing in it or on it
used about something that has nothing inside: · an empty can of hair spray· The fridge is almost empty.
used about a computer screen or a piece of paper that has no writing or pictures on it, or a CD, DVD etc with nothing recorded on it: · a blank sheet of paper· He stared at the blank screen for a few minutes.· a blank tape
used about a room or cupboard that has very little in it: · His room was bare except for a bed and a wardrobe.
used about something that has an empty space inside: · a hollow tree· The suitcase had a hollow bottom.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY
They won, but it was a hollow victory. Even as he spoke, Ivan was well aware of the hollow ring to his words.COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES a red-cheeked plump old fellow
They won, but it was a hollow victory. Even as he spoke, Ivan was well aware of the hollow ring to his words. a red-cheeked plump old fellow (=one that will not be kept)· I didn’t make any false promises.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN· Even with all this, the hollow cheeks, the scalp withered, you could still see how handsome Hugh had been.· White-faced, with a three-day-old beard, hollow cheeks and staring eyes, Sikes looked like a ghost.· Its flame showed up her hollow cheeks, the haunted eyes.
· But the famous Bongs! will have a hollow ring for millions of soccer fans anxiously waiting for news of their teams.· It resembles a hollow ring of land surrounded by scattered archipelagos.· The thought had a hollow ring to it.
· For those widowed or bereaved in other ways, victory must have had a hollow sound.· The hollow sound of the key in the lock.· The hollow sound was the beginning of the game, not the end.· The hollow sounds of doors banging and footsteps receding echoed in her ears as she stepped inside the sparsely furnished room.· But within a couple of pages, it's back to the hollow sound of random jottings.
· They left messages in a hollow tree on Seacroft estate.· A half-dozen anonymous workers scout ahead to check possible hive locations in hollow trees or wall cavities.· Bats roost naturally both in caves and hollow trees.· Those seen in the spring will have hibernated over the winter in garden sheds or hollow trees.· Whatever happened to Shurll, Jane wondered - did she go and live in a hollow tree?· Like nearly all the other forty-five species, they nest in hollow trees.· Not a single bird sings in the dry, hollow trees.
· Rear Suspension - Two transverse torsion bars are located within a hollow tube and operated by trailing arms.· The tip of this hollow tube is guided up into the internal carotid.· Filled with small seeds, the hollow tube becomes a rattle.· In fact its feathered section is a hollow tube.
· If he had been absent I would have looked upon it as something of a hollow victory.· He thought how sorry he felt for Grover, stuck with his hollow victories.
PHRASES FROM THE ENTRY► hollow laugh/voice etcPHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
1empty inside having an empty space inside: - A well-shaped grey head leaned to peer at her out of concerned hollow eyes, whose colour she could not determine.
- Even with all this, the hollow cheeks, the scalp withered, you could still see how handsome Hugh had been.
- His hollow eyes have led you to expect something far more ruined.
- Its flame showed up her hollow cheeks, the haunted eyes.
- The hollow eyes on the pillow were filling with tears.
- White-faced, with a three-day-old beard, hollow cheeks and staring eyes, Sikes looked like a ghost.
- His assurances that things will change rang hollow.
- Apart from a bit of woodworm, the beam seemed solid enough, but the panel rang hollow.
- But its claim to have performed better than the Communist party did in 1950 rings hollow.
- But once the events began, his image rang hollow for some.
- Such events will ring hollow if they are not markers for some-thing larger and deeper that is going on in the school.
- Summerchild taps on the hardboard divisions to demonstrate their solidity and stops at once when they ring hollow.
- The Republicans put on an intimidating show, as they always intended, but it somehow rang hollow.
- Their footsteps rang hollow in the register office like a bad comic going off stage.
- These arguments ring hollow because they misunderstand the mode of responsibility in question.
a hollow tree► see thesaurus at empty2hollow eyes/cheeks etc eyes etc where the skin sinks inwards: He was short and thin, with hollow eyes.3sound a hollow sound is low and clear like the sound made when you hit something empty: There was a hollow thump as the cars collided.4no value words, events, or people that are hollow have no real worth or value: They won, but it was a hollow victory. Even as he spoke, Ivan was well aware of the hollow ring to his words.5hollow laugh/voice etc a hollow laugh or voice makes a weak sound and is without emotion—hollowly adverb: Sam laughed hollowly.—hollowness noun [uncountable]hollow1 adjectivehollow2 nounhollow3 verb
hollowhollow2 noun [countable] EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Fill the hollow with the cream cheese mixture.
- Down in this hollow the sky seemed darker, the wind colder.
- He built a corral in a hollow across the river and made two small ponies from mud.
- His hands whispered over her, light as silk, seeking out every pale hollow and rounded slope.
- If the resultant hollow in the neck is really severe it might require a form of heat treatment to rectify the situation.
- Nearly all the men in the hollow were wounded, one man frightfully so, his arm being cut short off.
- Springs had erupted in every hollow, and every path was a rivulet.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES a red-cheeked plump old fellow
a red-cheeked plump old fellow (=one that will not be kept)· I didn’t make any false promises.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a place in something that is at a slightly lower level than its surface SYN dip: - His assurances that things will change rang hollow.
- Apart from a bit of woodworm, the beam seemed solid enough, but the panel rang hollow.
- But its claim to have performed better than the Communist party did in 1950 rings hollow.
- But once the events began, his image rang hollow for some.
- Such events will ring hollow if they are not markers for some-thing larger and deeper that is going on in the school.
- Summerchild taps on the hardboard divisions to demonstrate their solidity and stops at once when they ring hollow.
- The Republicans put on an intimidating show, as they always intended, but it somehow rang hollow.
- Their footsteps rang hollow in the register office like a bad comic going off stage.
- These arguments ring hollow because they misunderstand the mode of responsibility in question.
Make a slight hollow in the middle of each cake.hollow1 adjectivehollow2 nounhollow3 verb
hollowhollow3 verb [transitive] VERB TABLE
hollow
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | hollow |
| he, she, it | hollows | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | hollowed |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have hollowed |
| he, she, it | has hollowed | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had hollowed |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will hollow |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have hollowed |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am hollowing |
| he, she, it | is hollowing | |
| you, we, they | are hollowing | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was hollowing |
| you, we, they | were hollowing | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been hollowing |
| he, she, it | has been hollowing | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been hollowing |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be hollowing |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been hollowing |
EXAMPLES FROM THE CORPUS
- Are you aware of how we kill and hollow out your relatives?
- Ask a grown-up to help you hollow out the centre of the carrot.
- Some horses are naturally more sensitive than others and the rider's weight causes them to hollow and stiffen.
Longman Language Activatorto make a hole in the ground or surface of something
to make a space by removing the inside part of something: hollow out something/hollow something out: · Carefully hollow out the pineapple and then fill it with the ice-cream.
British to make a hole in the ground using a tool that is made for digging: · To plant the tree you need to dig out a hole about 20 cm wide and 30 cm deep.· The workmen were already digging out the foundations for the building.
to make a deep cut in a surface, using something sharp, especially in order to remove something: · The blade gouged a deep wound in her leg.gouge out something/gouge something out (=remove something by violently cutting a hole): · In the play he tries to gouge out his own eyes.
to make a very small hole in something, especially accidentally, using something pointed such as a pin: · A small bead of blood formed where she had pricked her finger.· Prick the potatoes before baking them.
to make a narrow hole in something using a tool that turns round and round very quickly: · I heard the dentist start drilling, but I couldn't feel anything.drill for oil/water/gas etc: · Oil companies still drill for oil off Santa Barbara.drill into: · It sounds like someone's drilling into the wall.
to make a hole in a hard surface such as rock or the ground using a lot of pressure, especially in order to find or remove minerals, coal etc: · The mining company bored a 5000 foot hole.· The machine they used to bore the tunnel is the size of a two storey house.bore into/through: · They had to bore through solid rock.
to accidentally hit the surface of something, especially something metal, so that part of the surface is bent or slightly lower than the rest: · He accidentally dented the garage door, trying to reverse in.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES a red-cheeked plump old fellow
a red-cheeked plump old fellow (=one that will not be kept)· I didn’t make any false promises.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
to make the surface of something curve inwards: - His assurances that things will change rang hollow.
- Apart from a bit of woodworm, the beam seemed solid enough, but the panel rang hollow.
- But its claim to have performed better than the Communist party did in 1950 rings hollow.
- But once the events began, his image rang hollow for some.
- Such events will ring hollow if they are not markers for some-thing larger and deeper that is going on in the school.
- Summerchild taps on the hardboard divisions to demonstrate their solidity and stops at once when they ring hollow.
- The Republicans put on an intimidating show, as they always intended, but it somehow rang hollow.
- Their footsteps rang hollow in the register office like a bad comic going off stage.
- These arguments ring hollow because they misunderstand the mode of responsibility in question.
The steps were hollowed by centuries of use.GRAMMAR Hollow is usually passive.hollow something ↔ out phrasal verb to make a hole or empty space by removing the inside part of something