dead air

noun

the loss or suspension of the video or audio signal during a television or radio transmission.

Origin of dead air

First recorded in 1940–45

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Silence, meanwhile, is typically seen as a sign that one side is stumped—dead air is for losers.
Silence is the most misunderstood negotiation superpower | Anne Quito | April 8, 2021 | Quartz
Was it a mere thrill of the dead air, too slight to be heard, but quivering in every spiritual sense?
Lilith | George MacDonald
Again the man sniffed the dead air and, swinging the rifle into the crook of his elbow, continued toward the grub-shack.
The Promise | James B. Hendryx
Just as they rode down by the first buildings a low whistle sounded on the heavy, dead air.
The Young Engineers in Arizona | H. Irving Hancock
The walls are of concentric shells of copper and zinc with two of wood, between which is 'dead air,' an effective heat insulator.
The Social Gangster | Arthur B. Reeve

And through the dead air came ever the low moaning of a distant sea, towards which my feet did bear me.
Thomas Wingfold, Curate | George MacDonald

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