Translation guide
A guide to expressing 'blackout' in Japanese, covering power outages, loss of consciousness, media suppression, and blackout curtains.
A loss of electrical power in an area.
The standard word for a power outage or blackout. Used in everyday conversation and news.
昨日、台風で停電した。
Yesterday, there was a blackout due to the typhoon.
停電が復旧した。
The power has been restored.
A more casual way to say the electricity stopped. Literally 'the electricity stops'.
さっき、急に電気が止まった。
Just now, the power suddenly went out.
A loanword from English, used in technical or news contexts for large-scale blackouts. Less common in daily speech.
大規模なブラックアウトが発生した。
A large-scale blackout occurred.
A temporary loss of consciousness or fainting.
The standard phrase for losing consciousness. Can be used for fainting or blacking out.
彼は事故で意識を失った。
He lost consciousness in the accident.
A slightly more casual or colloquial way to say 'lose consciousness' or 'faint'.
暑さで気を失いそうになった。
I almost blacked out from the heat.
A medical term for fainting or syncope. Used in formal or clinical contexts.
A deliberate suppression of information or news.
Refers to a news blackout or media control, often imposed by authorities.
政府は事件について報道管制を敷いた。
The government imposed a news blackout on the incident.
Literally 'information cutoff', used for blocking information flow, including media blackouts.
その地域では情報遮断が行われた。
An information blackout was enforced in that area.
Curtains that block all light from entering a room.
The standard term for blackout curtains. '遮光' means light-blocking.
寝室に遮光カーテンをつけた。
I put up blackout curtains in the bedroom.
Refers to blackout curtains used in theaters or for blackout drills. Less common for home use.
The loanword ブラックアウト is mainly used for power outages or sometimes in gaming/technical contexts. For losing consciousness, use 意識を失う or 気を失う.
彼はブラックアウトした。
He blacked out. (This sounds unnatural for fainting; use 意識を失った instead.)
失神の原因を調べる。
Investigate the cause of the blackout.
舞台では暗幕が使われる。
Blackout curtains are used on stage.