vacant

Definitions

vac (empty) + -ant (adj.) = "being empty." A vacant room is physically empty; a vacant post is empty of a person; and a vacant stare is a face empty of thought. The same emptiness moves from space to people to expressions.

Why It Means This

The "blank stare" sense is a neat extension: just as a room can be empty of furniture, a face can be empty of thought. "Vacant" applied to a look means nobody seems to be "home" behind the eyes.

Common Collocations

• 1.vacant lot空地
• 2.vacant position空缺职位
• 3.vacant stare茫然的眼神
• 4.fall vacant出现空缺

Example Sentences

• 1.

  The apartment next door has been vacant for months.

• 2.

  The position became vacant when the manager resigned.

• 3.

  He stared at me with a vacant expression.