hollow (hollows plural & 3rd person present) (hollowing present participle) (hollowed past tense & past participle )
1 adj Something that is hollow has a space inside it, as opposed to being solid all the way through.
...a hollow tree.
2 adj A surface that is hollow curves inwards.
He looked young, dark and sharp-featured, with hollow cheeks.
3 n-count A hollow is a hole inside a tree.
I made my home there, in the hollow of a dying elm.
4 n-count A hollow is an area that is lower than the surrounding surface.
Below him the town lay warm in the hollow of the hill.
5 adj If you describe a statement, situation, or person as hollow, you mean they have no real value, worth, or effectiveness.
Any threat to bring in the police is a hollow one.
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hollowness n-uncount
One month before the deadline we see the hollowness of these promises.
6 adj If someone gives a hollow laugh, they laugh in a way that shows that they do not really find something amusing.
Murray Pick's hollow laugh had no mirth in it.
7 adj A hollow sound is dull and echoing.
...the hollow sound of a gunshot.
8 verb If something is hollowed, its surface is made to curve inwards or downwards.
The mule's back was hollowed by the weight of its burden. be V-ed