The Meaning of karappo [空っぽ] In Japanese

空っぽ
からっぽ
Romaji: karappo N5

What does 空っぽ mean?

Translation and Meaning

empty, hollow, bare

Definition

空っぽ means empty or devoid of contents. It describes something with nothing inside and can also be used metaphorically for a lack of substance, energy, or meaning in a person or situation.

Type

na-adjective (な-adjective)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • Physical emptiness: describes a container, space, or vessel with nothing inside.
  • Metaphorical emptiness: describes a mind, mood, or atmosphere lacking substance or vitality.
  • State of being emptied or unfilled: used to express that contents have been removed or left vacant.

Etymology

空 indicates emptiness, while っぽ is a suffix that marks appearance or tendency; together they form 空っぽ with the sense of ’empty in content’ or ’empty-looking.’

Composition

  • 空 = core meaning of empty; in this word it carries the semantic load of emptiness rather than the ‘sky’ sense
  • っぽ = suffix indicating appearance or tendency; combined they yield an adjective-like noun meaning ’empty-looking’ or ’empty in content’

Usage

Used as a noun or na-adjective in casual and written Japanese. It modifies nouns with の (空っぽの財布) and can serve as a predicate with だ/です in informal to semi-formal contexts (空っぽだ). In formal writing, prefer terms like 空虚 or 中身がない.
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: treat 空 as ’empty’ and っぽ as ‘looking like’ — 空っぽ literally conveys ‘looking empty’; picture an empty container to recall the meaning quickly.

Variations

  • からっぽ karappo — empty
  • 空虚 kukyō — formal or abstract emptiness
  • がらんと garanto — emptiness in a spatial sense

Example Phrases

  • 財布が空っぽで、今日は外食を諦めた。
    Saifu ga karappo de, kyou wa gaishoku o akirameta.
    My wallet is empty, so I gave up eating out today.
    Lista:
    • 財布が (saifu ga) – wallet
    • 空っぽで (karappo de) – empty state connective de
    • 今日は (kyou wa) – today
    • 外食を (gaishoku o) – dining out
    • 諦めた (akirameta) – gave up
    「空っぽ」 means empty; here it describes the wallet’s state and is linked with で to explain the reason for not dining out.
空っぽ