il black out

Parola del giorno

Today’s Parola del giorno is the noun il black out.

It is often written without the space as il blackout.

The word means blackout, a condition in which there is no electrical power due to a power failure of some kind.

You could also say un’interruzione della corrente elettrica, which is a bit longer and perhaps less colloquial.

See the expression used below:

La Spagna e il Portogallo stanno soffrendo un blackout: nessuno può usare i cellulari o i bancomat ed è quasi impossibile ordinare una birra al bar, perché niente funziona.

Spain and Portugal are suffering from a blackout: no one can use cell phones or ATMs and it is almost impossible to order a beer at the bar because nothing works.