dead air
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of dead air
First recorded in 1940–45
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It seeks to deliver a brisk 30-minute recap of the day’s headlines without any halting clauses, dropped prepositions, or dead air.
From Slate • Jan. 6, 2026
In November 1966, New York’s WPIX-TV had a 90-minute block of dead air that the studio’s president, Fred Thrower, decided to fill with footage of a roaring fire, calling it a Christmas card.
From Salon • Dec. 18, 2025
"Even when there's a few moments of dead air here, people think, 'What's wrong?" laughs Ms Hagen.
From BBC • Jul. 13, 2025
The entire commentary shines with a very knowledgeable director explaining his craft and his motivations with only a few areas of dead air.
From Washington Times • Jul. 27, 2023
Sam heard the noise of their harsh voices, flat and hard in the dead air, and he could distinguish two voices from among all the rest: they were louder, and nearer to him.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
