vacant
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- unoccupied, available, empty, free, idle, unfilled, untenanted, void
- vague, absent-minded, abstracted, blank, dreamy, idle, inane, vacuous

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Antonyms: occupied
Contrasted words: inhabited, tenanted, filled, used
Related Words: tenantless, unfilled, unoccupied, untaken, empty-headed, inane, thoughtless, witless, bare, empty

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English Thesaurus: available, free, vacant, spare, empty, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

va‧cant /ˈveɪkənt/ adjective
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: Latin, present participle of vacare 'to be empty, be free']

1. a vacant seat, building, room, or piece of land is empty and available for someone to use:
Only a few apartments were still vacant.
There was only a vacant lot (=empty unused area of land in a city) where her house used to be.

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In everyday English, people usually say that a seat or room is free rather than vacant:
Is this seat free?

2. formal a job or position in an organization that is vacant is available for someone to start doing
fall vacant British English (=become vacant)
He was offered the position of headmaster when it fell vacant.
situations vacant British English (=the part of a newspaper where jobs are advertised)

3. vacant expression/look/stare etc written an expression that shows that someone does not seem to be thinking about anything:
He gazed at me with vacant eyes.
—vacantly adverb:
Cindy was staring vacantly into space.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

vacant
adj.
VERBS be | become, fall (only used of jobs) A seat became vacant and he sat down in it. A job fell vacant in the accounting department.
remain | leave sth The office of president had been left vacant since her retirement.
keep sth The job will be kept vacant for a few more weeks.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

available if something is available, you can buy it, get it, or use it:
Are there any tickets still available for Saturday?
There’s no room for more books – we’ve used up all the available space.
free if a seat or room is free, it is not being used by anyone:
Excuse me, is this seat free?
The hotel never has any free rooms over the Christmas period.
vacant if a house or room is vacant, it is available for someone to use or rent:
If you’re looking for somewhere to rent, I think there’s a vacant apartment in my building.
I’ll ask around and see if there’s a room vacant somewhere.
The sign on the toilet said ‘vacant’.
spare a spare room, key, tyre etc is one that you have in addition to the ones that you normally use, and is therefore available to be used:
We have a spare room you can stay in.
There’s a spare key in this drawer.
I got the spare tyre out of the back of the car.
empty an empty room, building etc has no one in it:
The house was empty for two months before it was sold.
They have three empty rooms now that the kids have moved out.
on offer if something is on offer, it is available for people to choose from:
There is a huge network of cycle tracks on offer.
Other facilities on offer in this excellent hotel include a hairdressing salon, a coffee shop, and a children's play room.
the variety of delicious fruits on offer
taken [not before noun] if a seat or room is taken, it is not available for other people to use, because someone has already arranged to use it:
I’m sorry – that seat is taken.
I’m afraid all our rooms are taken at the moment.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

empty used about a place that has no one in it or no one using it:
There were no lights on and the house looked empty.
the empty streets
free used about a seat, space, or room that is available to use because no one else is using it:
Is this seat free?
There are never any parking spaces free at this time of day.
vacant used about a room or building that is available for people to pay to use:
a vacant apartment
The next guesthouse we tried had a couple of rooms vacant.
deserted used about a place that is quiet because there is no one there, or because the people who used to be there have left:
a deserted village
It was three o'clock in the morning and the streets were deserted.
uninhabited /ˌʌnɪnˈhæbətəd◂, ˌʌnɪnˈhæbɪtəd◂/ used about a place that has no people living in it, especially permanently:
an uninhabited island
unoccupied /ʌnˈɒkjəpaɪd, ʌnˈɒkjʊpaɪd $ -ˈɑːk-/ especially written used about a house, room, or office that no one is living in or using at the moment:
unoccupied buildings
Burglaries frequently happen when people are on holiday and their house is unoccupied.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

empty used about something that has nothing inside:
an empty can of hair spray
The fridge is almost empty.
blank used about a computer screen or a piece of paper that has no writing or pictures on it, or a CD, DVD etc with nothing recorded on it:
a blank sheet of paper
He stared at the blank screen for a few minutes.
a blank tape
bare used about a room or cupboard that has very little in it:
His room was bare except for a bed and a wardrobe.
hollow used about something that has an empty space inside:
a hollow tree
The suitcase had a hollow bottom.
free used about a seat, space, or room that is available to use because no one else is using it:
Is this seat free?
There are never any parking spaces free at this time of day.
vacant used about a room or building that is available for people to pay to use:
a vacant apartment
The next guesthouse we tried had a couple of rooms vacant.
deserted used about a place that is quiet because there is no one there, or because the people who used to be there have left:
a deserted village
It was three o'clock in the morning and the streets were deserted.
uninhabited /ˌʌnɪnˈhæbətəd◂, ˌʌnɪnˈhæbɪtəd◂/ used about a place that has no people living in it, especially permanently:
an uninhabited island
unoccupied /ʌnˈɒkjəpaɪd, ʌnˈɒkjʊpaɪd $ -ˈɑːk-/ especially written used about a house, room, or office that no one is living in or using at the moment:
unoccupied buildings
Burglaries frequently happen when people are on holiday and their house is unoccupied.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲