A hole in space was the description given to the phenomenon created by Nagilum in the Morgana Quadrant in order to entrap the USS Enterprise-D in 2365. Unlike normal space, the phenomenon was totally devoid of any objects or energy and rendered the Enterprise immobile.
Nagilum created the hole in order to study the Humans aboard Enterprise. To this end it also created an image of the USS Yamato to study the Humans' reaction and killed a member of the Enterprise crew in order to understand their reaction to death.
Nagilum eventually released the starship when it became clear that Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the rest of the crew would prefer to destroy the ship by auto-destruct rather than remain as prisoners of the creature. (TNG: "Where Silence Has Lease")