Dictionary

outage en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈaʊ.tɪd͡ʒ/ (US)
• /ˈaʊ.tɪd͡ʒ/ (UK)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈaʊ.təd͡ʒ/ (US)
• [ˈæɔ.ɾɪd͡ʒ] (Australia)
• [ˈaʊ.ɾɪd͡ʒ] (US)
• /ˈæɔ.tɪd͡ʒ/ (Australia)

Etymology

From out + -age, on the model of shortage.

Meanings

1. A temporary suspension of operation, especially of electrical power supply.
   • [Rural solar plant] schemes are of little help to industry or other heavy users of electricity. Nor is solar power yet as cheap as the grid. For all that, the rapid arrival of electric light to Indian villages is long overdue. When the national grid suffers its next huge outage, as it did in July 2012 when hundreds of millions were left in the dark, look for specks of light in the villages. 2013 July 20, “Out of the gloom”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845, archived from the original on 12 Mar 2023:
   • Along with the planned de-energizations, PG&E customers are also dealing with a number of unplanned power outages – like in Davis, where about 2,700 customers are in the dark, and El Dorado Hills, where more than 5,100 customers are impacted. 2026 May 17, Cecilio Padilla, “PG&E planned outages start in Northern California over fire danger”, in CBS News, archived from the original on 18 May 2026:
2. The amount of something lost in storage or transportation.

Forms

Deriveds

power outage · sun outage

Relateds

dropout · power cut · brownout · blackout

Synonyms

blackout · power cut

Translations (33)

it interruzione (suspension of operation) · vi cúp điện (suspension of operation) · pl awaria (suspension of operation) · bg престой (suspension of operation) · it disservizio (suspension of operation) · tr kesinti (suspension of operation) · lt nubyrėjimas (amount lost in storage or transportation) · es apagón (suspension of operation) · de Stromausfall (suspension of operation) · bg утечка (amount lost in storage or transportation) · fr perte de marchandise (amount lost in storage or transportation) · lt prastova (suspension of operation) · pl przestój (suspension of operation) · de Ausfall (suspension of operation) · cs porucha (suspension of operation) · it black-out (suspension of operation) · es desconexión (suspension of operation) · lt nutekėjimas (amount lost in storage or transportation) · ru ава́рия (suspension of operation) · cs výpadek (of elektricity) (suspension of operation) · es interrupción (suspension of operation) · pl strata (amount lost in storage or transportation) · cs prostoj (suspension of operation) · ca pana (suspension of operation) · es corte (suspension of operation) · nl panne (suspension of operation) · lt nuotekis (amount lost in storage or transportation) · fi katkos (suspension of operation) · fr panne (suspension of operation) · vi mất điện (suspension of operation) · fr interruption (suspension of operation) · ca apagada (suspension of operation) · lt gedimas (suspension of operation)