blackout 1 of 2

noun

ˈblak-ˌau̇t How to pronounce blackout (audio)
Definition of blackoutnext
as in daze
a temporary state of unconsciousness even though you experienced only a brief blackout, you still ought to be checked by a doctor

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

black out

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to eradicate
to destroy all traces of had spent most of her adulthood trying to black out memories of a wretched childhood

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to darken
to grow dark with the delivery of the knockout punch, the screen blacks out, and in the next scene the boxer wakes up in the hospital

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to faint
to lose consciousness blacked out after hitting her head on the beam

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of blackout
Noun
Divers wear blackout masks and practice rescuing themselves and fellow firefighters while operating without vision. — Darius Johnson, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026 Museum officials initially lowered blackout shades over the windows, which solved the conservation problem but created another one. — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 6 Aug. 2026
Verb
Shirilla’s defense claimed the teen suffered from postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) — a condition that can cause dizziness and fainting — and had blacked out. — Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 30 July 2026 And what remains is all blacked out, except for the lower rocker covers and pushrod tubes – from the fork covers, the controls, the handlebar, the turn signals, the headlight bucket, the engine, exhaust, and even the rear fender struts. — New Atlas, 25 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for blackout
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blackout
  1. daze
  2. eradicate
  3. darken
  4. faint
  5. trance
  6. erase
  7. dusk
  8. syncope
Noun
  • Everyone in town seemed to walk through that day in a daze; Leslie’s name was spoken in hushed whispers.
    — Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 31 July 2026
  • Kutsuna has an impish twinkle; Yamada mutely swans about in a daze like an opium fiend.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2026
Definition of daze
Verb
  • Tlaib is also a prominent critic of Israel; her rhetoric has been chastised by Jewish colleagues as an antisemitic call for eradicating Jews, a charge the congresswoman and her supporters reject.
    — Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Smallpox, which was eradicated in 1980 and no longer naturally circulates, was once one of the world's deadliest diseases.
    — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of eradicate
Verb
  • In locations where the eclipse will occur around sunset, people may see Perseid meteors during totality, the minutes when the moon fully blocks the sun’s light, leaving a fiery ring and temporarily darkening the skies.
    — Denise Chow, NBC news, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Severe weather cut power Tuesday in the Chicago area and northwestern Indiana as perilous storms pummeled the region, darkening the sky and carrying extreme wind gusts across state lines.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of darken
Verb
  • Allegedly, so many cinema-goers vomited and fainted during the initial screenings of William Friedkin’s The Exorcist (1973) that theatre staff had to hand out smelling salts.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Continuing to hold their breath causes a lack of oxygen to the brain and the swimmer faints without warning.
    — Chip Alexander, Charlotte Observer, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of faint
Noun
  • His research has included brain scans of people in prayer, meditation, rituals, and trance states, as well as surveys of people's spiritual experiences and attitudes.
    — Big Think, Big Think, 6 Aug. 2026
  • One by one, as if roused from a trance, my fellow staffers rose from their workstations and filed to the exit.
    — Danny Heitman, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2026
Definition of trance
Verb
  • Their efforts have successfully erased half the population from public life and made Afghanistan one of the world’s most dangerous places to be a woman.
    — Kara Fox, CNN Money, 15 Aug. 2026
  • But what frightened me most was not death alone, but the idea of dying before my writings reached the world—that my story would disappear with me, and that my feelings, my memories, my identity, and my human experience would be erased.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of erase
Verb
  • With minimal humidity, near-perfect clear-sky frequency and vast empty horizons, Namibia offers the kind of slow, immersive darkness that makes dusking feel less like a trend and more like a return to something ancient.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 24 May 2026
  • The park is open from daylight to dusk for visitors and 24/7 for campers.
    — Isa Almeida, Oklahoman, 15 Jan. 2026
Definition of dusk
Noun
  • The company also flags baseline cardiac disease, abnormal ECG, arrhythmia, prior cervical vagotomy, abnormal cervical anatomy, brain tumor or aneurysm history, head trauma, syncope, seizures and nickel allergy as unevaluated risks.
    — Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 3 June 2026
  • Vasovagal syncope is defined by the British National Health Service as a common type of fainting caused by a sudden drop in blood pressure and heart rate.
    — Jessica Hopkins, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2026
Definition of syncope

Browse Nearby Words

blackness
blackout
black out
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Blackout.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blackout. Accessed 16 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on blackout

Nglish: Translation of blackout for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about blackout

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of zeugma

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All