the void

Meanings

1. 1nounsingular

   A large empty space; a place or situation with nothing in it.

   Grammar: Used with 'the' or 'a'. It can be literal (empty space) or figurative (a lack of something).

   Patterns

   • into the void
   • fill the void
   • a void in something

   The rocket disappeared into the void of space.

   After she left, he felt a void in his life.

   The new library filled a void in the community.

2. 2nounsingularfigurativeliterary

   A feeling of emptiness and lack of meaning in life.

   Grammar: Often used with 'the' in phrases like 'stare into the void' or 'the void inside'.

   Patterns

   • stare into the void
   • the void inside someone
   • a sense of the void

   He sat alone, staring into the void.

   She tried to fill the void with work and travel.

   Meditation helped him face the void within.

3. 3nounsingulartechnical

   In some games and stories, a place of nothingness where things disappear or are lost.

   Grammar: Often capitalized as 'the Void' in games and fiction.

   Patterns

   • banish someone to the void
   • fall into the void

   The villain was banished to the void.

   If you fall off the platform, you drop into the void.

Common combinations

into the void

He shouted into the void, but no one answered.

fill the void

Music helped fill the void after his retirement.

stare into the void

She stared into the void, lost in thought.

a void in one's life

Moving to a new city left a void in her life.

Synonyms and how they differ

emptiness

Emptiness is a general feeling of being empty; 'the void' is stronger and often suggests a vast, scary nothingness.

vacuum

A vacuum is a space with no matter, often used in science; 'the void' is more literary or figurative.

abyss

An abyss is a very deep hole or a terrifying emptiness; 'the void' can be similar but is often less dramatic.

Opposites

Word family

void adjective

Meaning empty or not valid, as in 'a void contract'.

void verb

To cancel or make something invalid, as in 'void the ticket'.

Commonly confused: the void or avoid? the void or devoid?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “the void”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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