whiteout

/ˈwaɪ.taʊt/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈwaɪ.t̬aʊt/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈ(h)wīt-ˌau̇t How to pronounce whiteout (audio)/ (ame, mw)

whiteout — noun

  • whiteoutsingular
  • whiteoutsplural

1. a weather situation in polar or desert regions where reflected sunlight off snow

1.名詞B2
釋義

a weather situation in polar or desert regions where reflected sunlight off snow or sand floods the landscape with uniform whiteness, making the horizon vanish and leaving only the darkest shapes visible

例句

In the Arctic, Naoko and her team stopped when a sudden whiteout hid the horizon.

sudden whiteout — sudden onset of the phenomenon

The rescue team trained for whiteout conditions by navigating with only a compass.

whiteout conditions — typical collocation

文法句型

a + whiteout

whiteout + noun (conditions)

用法筆記

Commonly encountered in polar exploration, high-altitude mountaineering, and aviation. Taiwanese mountaineers often call a similar phenomenon 白牆 (bái qiáng, 'white wall').

常見錯誤

❌I got a whiteout and couldn't see the road while driving in fog.
✅I got caught in a whiteout and couldn't see the road while driving through the snowstorm.
💡Whiteout requires snow or sand reflecting light, not regular fog.
❌White blindness is the same as whiteout.
✅Whiteout is a weather condition, while snow blindness is eye damage from UV rays.
💡The two terms describe different problems.

2. a dangerous snowstorm with powerful gusts and thick snowfall that drops visibili

2.名詞B2
釋義

a dangerous snowstorm with powerful gusts and thick snowfall that drops visibility to near zero and makes travel impossible

例句

A fierce whiteout hit the town of Hali and dropped 40 centimetres of snow in six hours.

fierce whiteout — adjective for severity

Tariro cancelled her flight because a whiteout reduced visibility to near zero.

whiteout reduced visibility — typical construction

同義詞
  • blizzard

    Blizzard specifically requires sustained winds of 56 km/h or more, while whiteout focuses on visibility regardless of exact wind speed.

文法句型

a + whiteout

whiteout + warning

用法筆記

Distinct from a regular snowstorm — a whiteout brings near-zero visibility and is often dangerous for drivers and pilots. Weather agencies issue whiteout warnings for affected regions.

常見錯誤

❌It was just a light whiteout, so we drove anyway.
✅The forecast said a whiteout was coming, so we cancelled the trip.
💡Whiteouts by definition involve heavy snow and near-zero visibility; there is no 'light' whiteout.

3. a thick white liquid used to paint over mistakes in written or drawn work so tha

3.名詞B1
釋義

a thick white liquid used to paint over mistakes in written or drawn work so that the correct text or image can be written on top

例句

Owen applied whiteout to the wrong date and wrote the correct one after it dried.

apply whiteout to [mistake] — standard verb + object collocation

The art teacher showed students how to use whiteout to fix ink drawing mistakes.

use whiteout to fix [mistakes]

同義詞
  • correction fluid

    More formal and internationally understood; whiteout is slightly more informal and North American.

文法句型

apply + whiteout

use + whiteout

a bottle/tube of + whiteout

用法筆記

The term whiteout for correction fluid is common in North America. In Taiwan, the brand name 立可白 (lì kě bái) is widely used in everyday speech, while 修正液 (xiū zhèng yè) is the formal name found on product labels.

常見錯誤

❌I need to buy a whiteout.
✅I need to buy some whiteout.' / 'I need to buy a bottle of whiteout.
💡As an uncountable noun, whiteout does not take 'a' directly. Use 'some whiteout' or 'a bottle/tube of whiteout.'