空空 (kōng kōng) — (colloquial) completely empty, bare, with nothing inside; (Buddhist philosophy) emptiness of emptiness; the unreality of all phenomena, including the concept of emptiness itself

Definition

空空 (kōngkōng) is the reduplicated bound form meaning 'completely empty' — used in literary or Buddhist contexts rather than everyday speech. In Buddhist philosophy it names a higher-order emptiness where even 'emptiness' itself is unreal.

bound form
(colloquial) completely emptybarewith nothing inside(Buddhist philosophy) emptiness of emptinessthe unreality of all phenomenaincluding the concept of emptiness itself

Examples

  • 空空
    Wū zi lǐ kōng kōng, shén me yě méi yǒu.
    Inside the room, it's completely empty — nothing at all.
  • 空空
    Fó jiào jiǎng 'kōng kōng', shì gèng gāo céng cì de jué wù.
    Buddhism teaches the 'emptiness of emptiness', which is a higher level of enlightenment.
  • 空空
    Kǎo wán shì hòu, wǒ de dà nǎo kōng kōng yí piàn.
    After the exam, my mind was completely blank.

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空空 (kōng kōng) — (colloquial) completely empty, bare, with nothi… | TongTong Chinese Dictionary