hol·low (h¼l“½) adj. 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. --hol·low n. 1. A
cavity, gap, or space: a hollow behind a wall. 2. An indented or
concave surface or area. See Synonyms at hole. 3. A void; an
emptiness: a hollow in one's life. 4. Also hol·ler (h¼l“…r).
Appalachian Mountains. A small valley between mountains. --hol·low v.
hol·lowed, hol·low·ing, hol·lows. --tr. 1. To make hollow: hollow out
a pumpkin. 2. To scoop or form by making concave: hollow out a nest in
the sand. --intr. To become hollow or empty. [Middle English holwe,
holowe, from holgh, hole, burrow (influenced by hole, hol low) from
Old English holh. See kel-1 below.] --hol“low·ly adv. --hol“low·ness
n.
hole (h½l) n. 1. A cavity in a solid. 2.a. An opening or a
perforation: a hole in the clouds. b. Sports. An opening in a
defensive formation, especially the area of a baseball infield between
the third base player and the shortstop. c. A fault or flaw: There are
holes in your argument. 3. A deep place in a body of water. 4. An
animal's hollowed-out habitation, such as a burrow. 5. An ugly,
squalid, or depressing dwelling. 6. A deep or isolated place of
confinement; a dungeon. 7. An awkward situation; a predicament. 8.
Sports. a. The small pit lined with a cup into which a golf ball must
be hit. b. One of the divisions of a golf course, from tee to cup. 9.
Physics. A vacant position in a crystal left by the absence of an
electron, especially a position in a semiconductor that acts as a
carrier of positive electric charge. In this sense, also called
electron hole. --hole v. holed, hol·ing, holes. --tr. 1. To put a hole
in. 2. To put or propel into a hole. --intr. To make a hole in somet
hing. --phrasal verbs. hole out. Sports. To hit a golf ball into the
hole. hole up. 1. To hibernate in or as if in a hole. 2. Informal. To
take refuge in or as if in a hideout. --idioms. hole in one. Sports.
The driving of a golf ball from the tee into the hole in only one
stroke. in the hole. 1. Having a score below zero. 2. In debt. 3. At a
disadvantage. [Middle English, from Old English hol. See kel-1 below.]
SYNONYMS: hole, hollow, cavity, pocket. These nouns refer to an
unfilled or empty space. Hole is applicable to an opening in or a
perforation through a solid body: dug a hole in the earth and planted
the seed; a hole in the bow of the ship made by a torpedo. Hollow
denotes an unfilled area in a solid body or a dent or depression on a
surface: a hollow in the ground where ivy grows; marble steps with
hollows worn by footsteps. A cavity is a hollow or hollow area within
a solid body or object: a cavity in a molar; the cranial cavity.
Pocket is applied to a cavity in the earth, as one containing a
mineral deposit, or to an isolated cavity or area that contains
foreign or contrasting matter: pockets of manganese in the rock; a
plane that plunged into a pocket of turbulence; pockets of
unemployment in an otherwise affluent society.
kel-1. Important derivatives are: hell, hall, hull, hole, hollow,
holster, apocalypse, eucalyptus, helmet, occult, color, cell, cellar,
conceal. kel-1. To cover, conceal, save. I. O-grade form *kol-. 1.a.
HELL, from Old English hell, hell; b. HEL, from Old Norse Hel, the
underworld, goddess of death. Both a and b from Germanic *halj½, the
underworld (< “concealed place”). 2.a. HALL, from Old English heall,
hall; b. VALHALLA, from Old Norse höll, hall. Both a and b from
Germanic *hall½, covered place, hall. 3. Suffixed form *kol-eyo-.
COLEUS; COLEOPTERAN, COLEOPTILE, COLEORHIZA, from Greek koleon,
koleos, sheath. II. Zero-grade form *k§-. 1.a. HOLD2, HULL, from Old
English hulu, husk, pod (< “that which covers”); b. HOLE, from Old
English hol, a hollow; c. HOLLOW, from Old English holh, hole, hollow;
d. HAUGH, from Old English healh, secret place, small hollow. a, b, c,
and d all from Germanic *hul-. 2.a. HOLSTER, from Old High German
hulft, covering; b. HOUSING2, from Medieval Latin hultia, protective
covering. Both a and b from suffixed Germanic form *hulftº-. 3.
Suffixed form *k§-to-. (see III. 2. below) Latin occultus. 4. Ex
tended form *kl³ (< *k§…-). CLANDESTINE, from Latin clam, in secret.
5. Suffixed variant form *kal-up-yo-. CALYPSO1, CALYPTRA; APOCALYPSE,
EUCALYPTUS, from Greek kaluptein, to cover, conceal. III. Full-grade
form *kel-. 1.a. HELM2, from Old English helm, protection, covering;
b. HELMET, from Middle English helmet, helmet, from a source akin to
Frankish *helm, helmet. Both a and b from Germanic *helmaz,
“protective covering.” 2. OCCULT, from Latin occulere < *ob-kel- (past
participle occultus < ob-k§-to-; see II. 3. above), to cover over
(ob-, over; see epi). 3. Suffixed form *kel-os-. COLOR, from Latin
color, color, hue (< “that which covers”). 4. Suffixed form *kel-n³-.
CELL, CELLA, CELLAR, CELLARER; (RATHSKELLER), from Latin cella,
storeroom, chamber. 5. Suffixed form *kel-yo-. CILIUM, SEEL;
SUPERCILIOUS, (SUPERCILIUM), from Latin cilium, lower eyelid. IV.
Lengthened-grade form *k¶l-³-. CONCEAL, from Latin c¶l³re, to hide.
[Pokorny 4. çel- 553.]
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