Synonyms for vacant
- adjective
Most common
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Empty — not occupied; empty
empty, unoccupied, unfilled, vacuous, uninhabited, abandoned, devoid, undeveloped, deserted, desolate, free, unpopulated, blank, available, empty-headed, dull, hollow, clean, desert, vague, untenanted, inane
2. Mindless
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Not occupied; empty.
- adj. 2
Not present; absent.
Related words
- Word family
- vacancy vacantness vacate vacuous vacuum
- Phrases
- vacant lot
Choose the right word
That is empty which contains nothing; that is vacant which is without that which has filled or might be expected to fill it; vacant has extensive reference to rights or possibilities of occupancy. A vacant room may not be empty, and an empty house may not be vacant.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- empty An empty stomach doesn't help on the mental front.
- uninhabited Algeria's islands are very small and uninhabited.
- unoccupied Paul checked the stall to see that it was unoccupied.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| vacant | falling | |
| empty | rising | |
| uninhabited | steady | |
| unoccupied | steady | |
| unfilled | falling |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- free1, dull1
- 5 letters
- clean1, empty2, blank1, vague1, inane2
- 6 letters
- desert2, hollow2, devoid2
- 7 letters
- vacuous3
- 8 letters
- deserted3, desolate3, mindless2, unfilled2
- 9 letters
- available4, abandoned3
- 10 letters
- unoccupied4, unthinking3, untenanted
- 11 letters
- undeveloped4, uninhabited5, thoughtless2, featureless3, unpopulated
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (empty2 = 2 syllables).