noun
cavity
KAV-iht-ee
noun
1
A hollow space or hole inside something solid.
"Engineers found a cavity in the wall behind the old pipework."
2
A decayed, hollow spot in a tooth caused by tooth decay.
"The dentist found two small cavities during my check-up."
"Eating too much sugar can lead to cavities."
How to Use Cavity
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA hollow space inside something — most commonly used today for a hole in a tooth.
Common pairings
fill a cavity
chest cavity
wall cavity
Word Forms
cavities plural
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Etymology
From Late Latin cavitās, from cavus ("hollow") plus the suffix -tās ("-ity"). First recorded in English in the mid-16th century.