Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

vacuous

/ˈvækju.əs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.54 in modern English

Syllables: vac-u-ous
IPA: /ˈvækju.əs/

12

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

3

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Empty; void; lacking meaningful content.

adj

Showing a lack of thought or intelligence; vacant.

Example Sentences

"vacuous expression"
"vacuous remark"
"The movie was criticized for its vacuous dialogue."
"She gave him a vacuous smile."
"Near-synonym: fatuous"

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin vacuus (“empty, vacant”) + -ous.

Word Breakdown

Root: *h₁weh₂-
Suffix: ous

Inflected Forms

more vacuous (comparative) most vacuous (superlative)

Derived Forms

nonvacuous supervacuous vacuity vacuously vacuousness

Phrases

vacuous truth empty-headed

Frequently Paired Words

vacant vacuous truth vacuum empty-headed

Synonyms

vacuitous empty vacant empty as a pauper's purse empty as the tomb on Easter clean leer toom unfilled vacuumlike vacuous void

Questions

How do you pronounce vacuous?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈvækju.əs/.
What does vacuous mean?: Empty; void; lacking meaningful content.
Where does vacuous come from?: Learned borrowing from Latin vacuus (“empty, vacant”) + -ous.

How to pronounce vacuous

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “vacuous”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈvækju.əs/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “vacuous”.
Repeat and practice — Say “vacuous” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.