thunderbolt
Americannoun
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a flash of lightning with the accompanying thunder.
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an imaginary bolt or dart conceived as the material destructive agent cast to earth in a flash of lightning.
the thunderbolts of Jove.
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something very destructive, terrible, severe, sudden, or startling.
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a person who acts with fury or with sudden and irresistible force.
noun
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a flash of lightning accompanying thunder
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the imagined agency of destruction produced by a flash of lightning
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(in mythology) the destructive weapon wielded by several gods, esp the Greek god Zeus See also Thor
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something very startling
Etymology
Origin of thunderbolt
First recorded in 1400–50, thunderbolt is from late Middle English thondre bolte. See thunder, bolt 1
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.
Cameroon also fell behind, against Mozambique in Agadir, but a thunderbolt from Christian Kofane delivered a 2-1 victory.
From Barron's • Dec. 31, 2025
The attack fell like a thunderbolt on the country’s tightly knit Jewish community.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 15, 2025
For me, it was a thunderbolt of thrill followed by pure abject terror that we might disappoint or “not have something good for her.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2024
The higher-for-longer inflation predicament has hit the U.S. housing market like a thunderbolt.
From New York Times • Apr. 12, 2024
Mark slipped out the window several inches—a thunderbolt of pure terror flashed through him like an electric shock before his progress stopped again.
From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner
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.
