To return or arrive empty-handed means to come back without what you were hoping to get or without bringing anything at all. If you go fishing and catch nothing, you come home empty-handed. If you search your room for your missing library book but can't find it, you return to the living room empty-handed.

The phrase creates a vivid picture: your hands are literally empty because you failed to obtain or find what you were after. A detective might investigate a case for months and still come up empty-handed, with no useful clues. Shoppers who arrive at a store too late might leave empty-handed because everything's sold out.

Sometimes empty-handed means coming without a gift when one is expected. In many cultures, arriving at someone's home empty-handed for dinner feels impolite, so guests bring flowers, dessert, or another small offering.

The phrase often carries a sense of disappointment or failure, though not always. You might feel frustrated about leaving the arcade empty-handed after spending all your tickets. But sometimes coming home empty-handed from a garage sale just means nothing caught your interest that day.