vacancy

[ vey-kuhn-see ]

noun

, plural va·can·cies.

1. the state of being vacant; emptiness.
2. a vacant, empty, or unoccupied place, as untenanted lodgings or offices:

   This building still has no vacancies.

3. a gap; opening; breach.
4. an unoccupied position or office:

   a vacancy on the Supreme Court.

5. lack of thought or intelligence; vacuity:

   a look of utter vacancy.

6. Crystallography. (in a crystal) an imperfection resulting from an unoccupied lattice position. Compare interstitial ( def 3 ).
7. Archaic. absence of activity; idleness.

vacancy

/ ˈveɪkənsɪ /

noun

1. the state or condition of being vacant or unoccupied; emptiness
2. an unoccupied post or office

   we have a vacancy in the accounts department

3. an unoccupied room in a boarding house, hotel, etc

   put the "No Vacancies" sign in the window

4. lack of thought or intelligent awareness; inanity

   an expression of vacancy on one's face

5. physics a defect in a crystalline solid caused by the absence of an atom, ion, or molecule from its position in the crystal lattice
6. obsolete.
   idleness or a period spent in idleness

Other Words From

• non·vacan·cy noun plural nonvacancies

Word History and Origins

Origin of vacancy¹

From the Medieval Latin word vacantia, dating back to 1570–80. See vacant, -ancy

Related Words

• gap
• job
• vacuum
• void