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.
Commentators fill the resulting hours of dead air with personal anecdotes, weaving a charming one-sided conversation through the occasional interruption of athletics.
From Salon • Mar. 18, 2026
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
"Even when there's a few moments of dead air here, people think, 'What's wrong?" laughs Ms Hagen.
From BBC • Jul. 13, 2025
During the track, Mr. Fuqua offers a subdued but pointed deconstruction of “Training Day” focused on the narrative but with plenty of moments of dead air.
From Washington Times • Mar. 21, 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.
