hollow

EnglishEdit

hollow on Wikipedia

Alternative formsEdit

hallow
holler (nonstandard: dialectal, especially Southern US)

PronunciationEdit

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˈhɒl.əʊ/
(US) IPA^(key): /ˈhɑ.loʊ/
- Audio (US) (file)
- (Southern American English, Appalachia) IPA^(key): /hɑlɚ/
Rhymes: -ɒləʊ

Etymology 1Edit

From Middle English holow, holowe, holwe, holwȝ, holgh, from Old English holh (“a hollow”), from Proto-West Germanic *hulwī, from Proto-Germanic *hulwiją, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *ḱólḱwos. (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?) Cognate with Old High German huliwa and hulwa, Middle High German hülwe. Perhaps related to hole.

NounEdit

hollow (plural hollows)

A small valley between mountains.
He built himself a cabin in a hollow high up in the Rockies.
- c. 1710–20, Matthew Prior, The First Hymn Of Callimachus: To Jupiter
  Forests grew upon the barren hollows.
- 1820 March 5, Geoffrey Crayon [pseudonym; Washington Irving], “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”, in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., number VI, New York, N.Y.: […] C. S. Van Winkle, […], OCLC 1090970992, pages 110–111:
  This road leads through a sandy hollow shaded by trees for about a quarter of a mile, where it crosses the bridge famous in goblin story, and just beyond swells the green knoll on which stands the whitewashed church.
- 1855, Alfred Tennyson, “Maud”, in Maud, and Other Poems, London: Edward Moxon, […], OCLC 1013215631, part I, stanza 1, page 1:
  I hate the dreadful hollow behind the little wood, / Its lips in the field above are dabbled with blood-red heath, / The red-ribb'd hedges drip with a silent horror of blood, / And Echo there, whatever is ask'd her, answers 'Death.'
A sunken area or unfilled space in something solid; a cavity, natural or artificial.
the hollow of the hand or of a tree
(figuratively) A feeling of emptiness.
a hollow in the pit of one’s stomach
(US) A sunken area.

TranslationsEdit

small valley

Bulgarian: падина (bg) f (padina)
Danish: gryden
Finnish: notko (fi)
Galician: caivanca f, valigoto

German: Mulde (de) f, Senke (de) f, kleines Tal n
Swedish: ravin (sv) c, dalsänka c, sänka (sv) c, grop (sv) c
Welsh: pant m

sunken area

Bulgarian: вдлъбнатина (bg) f (vdlǎbnatina)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 窪地 (zh), 洼地 (zh) (wādì)
Czech: dutina (cs) f, prohlubeň f
Dutch: laagte (nl) f
Finnish: onkalo (fi), kuoppa (fi), loukko (fi)
Galician: caivanca f, fondal m
Georgian: ღრუ (ɣru)
German: Höhle (de) f, Mulde (de) f, Kuhle (de) f, Vertiefung (de) f
Greek: βαθούλωμα (el) n (vathoúloma), κουφάλα (el) f (koufála), κοιλότητα (el) f (koilótita)
Irish: easca f
Italian: cavità (it) f
Japanese: 窪地 (ja) (kubo-chi)
Latvian: dobums m

Lithuanian: įduba f, duobė f, dauba f
Maori: pārō (of the hand), whārua (of land), whāwhārua (of land), pokorua
Norwegian:
Bokmål: hull (no) n, grop f

Nynorsk: hòl n, grop f
Plautdietsch: Hollinj f
Polish: nizina (pl) f, niecka (pl) f
Portuguese: depressão (pt) f, caivanca (pt)
Romanian: scorbură (ro) f, scobitură (ro) f, adâncitură (ro) f
Russian: впа́дина (ru) f (vpádina), углубле́ние (ru) n (uglublénije), вы́емка (ru) f (výjemka), я́ма (ru) f (jáma), вы́боина (ru) f (výboina), низи́на (ru) f (nizína)
Scottish Gaelic: sloc m
Spanish: depresión (es) m, hondonada (es) m
Swedish: grop (sv) c, hål (sv) n
Welsh: pant m

unfilled space in something solid; a cavity — See also translations at hole

Bashkir: ҡыуыш (qïwïš)
Bulgarian: коруба (bg) f (koruba)
Finnish: ontelo (fi)
French: creux (fr)
German: Loch (de) n
Hungarian: odú (hu)

Nanai: онголо
Plautdietsch: Hollinj f
Portuguese: oco (pt)
Russian: (in a tree) дупло́ (ru) n (dupló); по́лость (ru) f (pólostʹ); (technical use) каве́рна (ru) f (kavérna)
Spanish: hueco (es)

feeling of emptiness

Afar: hollow
Czech: prázdnota f
Finnish: onkalo (fi)
Greek: κενό (el) n (kenó)
Japanese: むなしい (ja) (munasī), 虚脱感 (kyodatsukan)

Polish: pustka (pl) f
Portuguese: vazio (pt) m
Russian: пустота́ (ru) f (pustotá)
Spanish: hueco (es) m, vacío (es) m
Swedish: saknad (sv) c, tomhet (sv) c
Ukrainian: пу́стка f (pústka), пустота́ f (pustotá)

VerbEdit

hollow (third-person singular simple present hollows, present participle hollowing, simple past and past participle hollowed)

(transitive) to make a hole in something; to excavate

Etymology 2Edit

From Middle English holowe, holwe, holuȝ, holgh, from the noun (see above).

AdjectiveEdit

hollow (comparative hollower, superlative hollowest)

(of something solid) Having an empty space or cavity inside.
a hollow tree; a hollow sphere
(of a sound) Distant, eerie; echoing, reverberating, as if in a hollow space; dull, muffled; often low-pitched.
He let out a hollow moan.
- 1903, George Gordon Byron, On Leaving Newstead Abbey
  Through thy battlements, Newstead, the hollow winds whistle:
(figuratively) Without substance; having no real or significant worth; meaningless.
a hollow victory
(figuratively) Insincere, devoid of validity; specious.
a hollow promise
Concave; gaunt; sunken.
- c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):
  To view with hollow eye and wrinkled brow
(gymnastics) Pertaining to hollow body position

Derived termsEdit

hollow leg

TranslationsEdit

having an empty space inside

Arabic: أَجْوَف‎ (ʾajwaf)
Bashkir: ҡыуыш (qïwïš), эсе буш (ese buš)
Belarusian: по́лы (póly), пусты́ (pustý)
Bulgarian: кух (bg) (kuh)
Catalan: buit (ca), balmat (ca)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 空心 (zh) (kōngxīn), 中空 (zh) (zhōngkōng), 空 (zh) (kōng)
Cornish: kow
Czech: dutý (cs) m
Danish: hul (da)
Dutch: hol (nl)
Esperanto: kava
Estonian: õõnes
Finnish: ontto (fi)
French: vide (fr) m or f, creux (fr)
Georgian: ცარიელი (carieli)
German: hohl (de)
Greek: κούφιος (el) m (koúfios), κοίλος (el) m (koílos)
Ancient: κοῖλος (koîlos)
Hebrew: חָלוּל‎ (he) (khalúl), רֵיק‎ (he) (reyk)
Hindi: खोखला (hi) (khokhlā)
Italian: cavo (it) m
Japanese: 空っぽ (からっぽ, karappo), くぼんだ (ja) (くぼんだ, kubonda), 中空の (ja) (ちゅうくうの, chūkū no), 虚ろの (ja) (うつろの, utsuro no), 空洞の (ja) (くうどうの, kūdō no)
Kurdish:
Central Kurdish: بۆش‎ (ku) (boş)
Latgalian: tukšs, dīks

Latin: cavus (la), inanis, vacuus
Latvian: tukšs (lv)
Lithuanian: tuščias, tuščiaviduris
Luxembourgish: huel
Macedonian: шуплив (šupliv)
Malayalam: പൊള്ള (ml) (poḷḷa), പൊള്ളയായ (poḷḷayāya)
Maori: kaiwaka
Mapudungun: trotrol
Norwegian:
Bokmål: hul (no), hol (no), innhul

Nynorsk: hol, innhol
Persian: کاواک‎ (fa) (kâvâk), پوک‎ (fa) (puk), توخالی‎ (fa) (tuxâli), کرو‎ (fa) (karv)
Punjabi: ਖੋਖਲਾ (khokhlā), ਥੋਥਾ (pa) m (thothā)
Polish: pusty (pl)
Portuguese: vazio (pt) m, oco (pt) m
Russian: по́лый (ru) (pólyj), пусто́й (ru) (pustój), поро́жний (ru) (poróžnij)
Scottish Gaelic: falamh
Spanish: hueco (es), ahuecado (es), hundido (es)
Swedish: ihålig (sv)
Tagalog: bamban
Telugu: బోలు (te) (bōlu), డొల్ల (te) (ḍolla)
Tocharian B: tronktse
Ukrainian: поро́жній (poróžnij), пусти́й (pustýj), пустопорожній (uk) (pustoporožnij)
Urdu: کھوکھلا‎ (khokhlā)
Vietnamese: rỗng (vi)
Welsh: cau (cy)
Yiddish: הויל‎ (hoyl), פּוסט‎ (pust), ליידיק‎ (leydik)

echoing, reverberating, as if in a hollow space

Danish: dyb
Finnish: ontto (fi)
Greek: υπόκωφος (el) m (ypókofos)
Japanese: こもった (ja) (こもった, komotta)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: dyp, hul (no)

Nynorsk: djup (nn), hol

Polish: głuchy (pl)
Russian: глухо́й (ru) (gluxój)
Scottish Gaelic: falamh
Spanish: resonante, sordo (es)
Ukrainian: лунки́й (lunkýj)

without substance

Bulgarian: празен (bg) (prazen), безсъдържателен (bg) (bezsǎdǎržatelen)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 空虛 (zh), 空虚 (zh) (kōngxū)
Czech: bezobsažný (cs) m, nesmyslný (cs) m, prázdný (cs) m
Danish: hul (da)
Dutch: leeg (nl)
Finnish: ontto (fi)
French: insignifiant (fr) m, creux (fr) m
Greek: κούφιος (el) m (koúfios)
Italian: vacuo (it)
Japanese: 空虚な (ja) (くうきょな, kūkyo na), 不誠実な (ふせいじつ, fuseijitsu na)
Malayalam: പൊള്ളയായ (poḷḷayāya)

Norwegian:
Bokmål: hul (no)

Nynorsk: hol
Polish: pusty (pl)
Portuguese: vão (pt)
Russian: пусто́й (ru) (pustój), бессодержа́тельный (ru) (bessoderžátelʹnyj)
Scottish Gaelic: falamh
Spanish: hueco (es), falso (es)
Swedish: tom (sv)
Telugu: శుష్క (śuṣka), డొల్ల (te) (ḍolla)
Ukrainian: пустий (pustyj), пустопорожній (uk) (pustoporožnij), беззмістовний (uk) (bezzmistovnyj), празний (praznyj)
Yiddish: פּוסט‎ (pust)

AdverbEdit

hollow (not comparable)

(colloquial) Completely, as part of the phrase beat hollow or beat all hollow.

Etymology 3Edit

Compare holler.

VerbEdit

hollow (third-person singular simple present hollows, present participle hollowing, simple past and past participle hollowed)

To call or urge by shouting; to hollo.
- 1749, Henry Fielding, chapter IV, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume III, London: A[ndrew] Millar […], OCLC 928184292, book VII, page 26:
  [T]he Converſation (if it may be called ſo) was ſeldom ſuch as could entertain a Lady. It conſiſted chiefly of Hollowing, Singing, Relations of ſporting Adventures, B—d—y, and Abuſe of Women and of the Government.
- 1814. Sir Walter Scott, Waverley
  He has hollowed the hounds.

InterjectionEdit

hollow

Alternative form of hollo

ReferencesEdit

hollow in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.