outage

noun

out·​age ˈau̇-tij 

1

: a quantity or bulk of something lost in transportation or storage

2

a

: a failure or interruption in use or functioning

b

: a period of interruption especially of electric current

Examples of outage in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The power company said the attack resulted in outages across the southern parts of the city, which is located about 47 kilometers (about 30 miles) west of the capital Tripoli. — ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026

Summer storms have taken their toll on the state's power grid, causing multiple power outages in some communities. — Tara Lynch, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026

Nearly 8,500 San Jose residents were without power on Sunday evening due to an unplanned PG&E outage. — Grace Hase, Mercury News, 10 Aug. 2026

The event continues to serve as an example of how enterprises evaluate cloud reliability and of the significant divergence between an organization’s expectations and the outcomes of an outage. — Srini Srinivasan, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1851, in the meaning defined at sense 1