thunderclap

[thuhn-der-klap]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR thunderclap ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a crash of thunder.

something resembling a thunderclap, as in loudness or unexpectedness.

Origin of thunderclap

First recorded in 1350–1400, thunderclap is from the Middle English word thonder clappe. See thunder, clap¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for thunderclap

blast, clash, smash, wham, crash, applause, burst, thunder, thwack, slap, thrust, bang, slam, boom, wallop, crack, strike, pat, whack, handclap

Examples from the Web for thunderclap

Contemporary Examples of thunderclap

And then (thunderclap) one of wine's darkest nemeses appeared: the artichoke.
The Secrets of Matchmaking
Katie Workman
August 11, 2009

Historical Examples of thunderclap

You may easily guess what a thunderclap this must have been to the Court.
The Memoirs of Cardinal de Retz, Complete
Jean Francois Paul de Gondi, Cardinal de Retz
The affray had burst over the slumbering town like a thunderclap.
The Fortune of the Rougons
Emile Zola
But to my mother it was a flash of joy, followed by a thunderclap of consternation.
The Stark Munro Letters
J. Stark Munro
The thunderclap which seemed to come simultaneously, rocked the plane like a feather.
The Solar Magnet
Sterner St. Paul Meek
Captain Candage turned on his mate with the violence of a thunderclap.
Blow The Man Down
Holman Day

British Dictionary definitions for thunderclap

thunderclap

noun

a loud outburst of thunder

something as violent or unexpected as a clap of thunder

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for thunderclap

late 14c., from thunder (n.) + clap (n.1).