dumsor means blackout, load shedding, particularly when occurring frequently but in no discernible regular pattern. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 82 out of 100.
Why “dumsor” is a great word
DUMSOR — [Noun] A chronic state of irregular, unpredictable electrical power outages, defined by its oppressive, erratic cadence. From Akan dum (“to extinguish, to quench”) + sɔ (“to turn on, to light”). Unlike a “blackout,” which denotes a general loss of power, or “load shedding,” which implies a planned, scheduled reduction, dumsor names the capricious tyranny of an infrastructure in haphazard collapse. It is the sudden ink of a computer screen, the abrupt silence of a refrigerator in a sweltering room, and the perpetual anxiety of a half-charged battery—a lived grammar of modernity that flickers on and off like a faulty bulb.
Etymology
From Akan dum (“to extinguish, to quench”) + sɔ (“to turn on, light”).
noun
- blackout, load shedding, particularly when occurring frequently but in no discernible regular pattern.“The end of ‘dumsor’ comes just at the end of the timeline that the Minister of Power, Mr Kwabena Donkor, gave that he would resign if the load shedding did not end. In March this year, Dr Donkor obligated himself to end dumsor by the end of December 2015.”