虚しい・空しい|むなしいmunashii[3]nakadaka (mid-high)

1. i-adjectiveempty; void; vacant
2. i-adjectivevain; fruitless; futile; ineffective
   彼かれは多おおくの日々ひびをむなしく過すごさなければならなかった。↗

   He had to spend many barren days.
3. i-adjectivelifeless

• Synonym空からNeutralRefers to being physically empty or hollow, and also to fakeness, as in 「箱が空だ」 or 「空元気」; 「虚しい」 is about inner emptiness and wasted effort.
• Synonym空虚くうきょWrittenWritten word for emptiness or hollowness, as in 「心の空虚」; more abstract and more formal than 「虚しい」.
• Synonym空疎くうそWrittenWritten word for speech or arguments that are hollow and lack substance, as in 「空疎な議論」; focuses on empty content, not feelings.
• RelatedはかないNeutralDescribes things fleeting and transient, as in 「儚い命」; centers on brevity, while 「虚しい」 centers on the letdown after hopes come to nothing.
• Related無駄むだNeutralMeans wasted or useless, as in 「無駄な努力」; judges the effort objectively useless, without the sense of loss in 「虚しい」.
• Related無益むえきWrittenWritten word meaning useless or bringing no benefit, as in 「無益な争い」; stresses lack of gain rather than emotional emptiness.
• Related無用むようNeutralMeans unnecessary or needless, as in 「心配無用」 or 「無用の長物」; stresses being superfluous rather than futile.
• RelatedだめCasualColloquial word for no good or hopeless, as in 「もう駄目だ」; flatly negates the result, without the wistful tone of 「虚しい」.
• Related不毛ふもうWrittenWritten word, literally for barren land, figuratively for fruitless efforts, as in 「不毛な議論」; stresses yielding no results.
• Related無意味むいみNeutralMeans meaningless or pointless, as in 「無意味な会議」; stresses lack of meaning rather than the ache of emptiness.
• RelatedくだらないCasualColloquial word for trivial or silly, as in 「下らない話」; carries a dismissive, contemptuous tone.
• Related徒爾とじFormalFormal word for futility; rarely used in modern Japanese.
• Related詮無いせんないWrittenWritten expression meaning there is no use, as in 「言っても詮無い」; specifically about saying or doing something being pointless.
• Related益体もないやくたいもないCasualColloquial phrase for something worthless or silly; now seldom used.
• Related無意義むいぎWrittenWritten word for meaningless; more formal than 「無意味」.
• Related虚ろうつろNeutralDescribes hollow eyes or vacant expressions, as in 「虚ろな目」; centers on a dazed, blank look rather than inner futility.
• Antonym充実したNeutralAntonym meaning fulfilling or full, as in 「充実した毎日」; the opposite of the inner emptiness of 「虚しい」.
• Antonym満ち足りたWrittenWritten antonym meaning contented and fulfilled; the opposite of the hollow, unfulfilled feeling of 「虚しい」.

Use 「虚しい」 for inner emptiness or efforts that come to nothing, as in 「虚しい気持ち」 or 「努力が虚しく終わる」. For something physically empty say 「空」, for fleeting things 「儚い」, and for wasted effort 「無駄」; the opposite is 「充実した」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 中身なかみがない。空虚くうきょな。
2. はかない。頼たよりにならない。やりきれない。
3. 結果けっかをともわない。無駄むだにおわる。
4. からっぽである。雑念ざつねんがない。
5. 魂たましいが抜ぬける。死しぬ。