Beat all hollow
having a space or cavity inside; not solid; empty:
a hollow sphere.
having a depression or concavity:
a hollow surface.
sunken, as the cheeks or eyes.
(of sound) not resonant; dull, muffled, or deep:
a hollow voice.
without real or significant worth; meaningless:
a hollow victory.
insincere or false:
hollow compliments.
hungry; having an empty feeling:
I feel absolutely hollow, so let’s eat.
an empty space within anything; a hole, depression, or cavity.
a valley:
They took the sheep to graze in the hollow.
Foundry. a concavity connecting two surfaces otherwise intersecting at an obtuse angle.
to make hollow (often followed by out):
to hollow out a log.
to form by making something hollow (often followed by out):
to hollow a place in the sand; boats hollowed out of logs.
to become hollow.
in a hollow manner:
The politician’s accusations rang hollow.
beat all hollow, to surpass or outdo completely:
His performance beat the others all hollow.
Also, beat hollow.
adjective
having a hole, cavity, or space within; not solid
having a sunken area; concave
recessed or deeply set: hollow cheeks
(of sounds) as if resounding in a hollow place
without substance or validity
hungry or empty
insincere; cynical
a hollow leg, hollow legs, the capacity to eat or drink a lot without ill effects
adverb
(Brit, informal) beat someone hollow, to defeat someone thoroughly and convincingly
noun
a cavity, opening, or space in or within something
a depression or dip in the land
verb often foll by out, usually when tr
to make or become hollow
to form (a hole, cavity, etc) or (of a hole, etc) to be formed
adj.
c.1200, from Old English holh (n.) “hollow place, hole,” from Proto-Germanic *hul-, from PIE *kel- “to cover, conceal” (see cell). The figurative sense of “insincere” is attested from 1520s. Related: Hollowly; hollowness. To carry it hollow “take it completely” is first recorded 1660s, of unknown origin or connection.
v.
late 14c., holowen, from hollow (adj.). Related: Hollowed; hollowing.
n.
“lowland, valley, basin,” 1550s, probably a modern formation from hollow (adj.). Old English had holh (n.) “cave, den; internal cavity.”
verb phrase
To defeat easily; surpass completely: His story beats mine all hollow
[mid-1800s+; Beat hollow, ”beat entirely, clobber” is attested fr 1769]
Related Terms
beat all hollow
see: beat the pants off (hollow)
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