hollow-eyed

[hol-oh-ahyd] / ˈhɒl oʊˌaɪd /

ADJECTIVE

haggard

Synonyms

WEAK

ashen careworn drawn emaciated exhausted faded fagged fatigued fretted gaunt ghastly lank lean pale pallid pinched scraggy scrawny shrunken skinny spare starved thin tired wan wasted weak wearied worn worn-down wrinkled

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The pictures show a pallid, hollow-eyed man, resembling Poe, who’s sitting by the fire in his dressing gown when there comes a gentle “rapping, rapping” at the door.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025

School district lawyers, contrary to popular belief and Disney Channel sitcoms are not hollow-eyed pencil pushers, who live to squelch liberty and creativity in red tape and regulation.

From Slate • Jun. 29, 2022

In one story, a hollow-eyed masseuse mourns the abrupt, outwardly random death of her son and the loss of her business to the pandemic as her wastrel husband dreams and schemes.

From New York Times • Apr. 19, 2022

At the Minsk airport, Iraqi families slumped hollow-eyed in seats as the plane was delayed several hours.

From Washington Post • Nov. 21, 2021

My sisters were similarly affected: Rachel became hollow-eyed and careworn, sometimes combing her hair only once per day.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver