thundercloud

American

[thuhn-der-kloud] / ˈθʌn dərˌklaʊd /

Or thunderclouds

noun

cumulonimbus.

thundercloud British

/ ˈθʌndəˌklaʊd /

noun

a towering electrically charged cumulonimbus cloud associated with thunderstorms
anything that is threatening

"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

thundercloud Scientific

/ thŭn′dər-kloud′ /

See cumulonimbus

Etymology

Origin of thundercloud

First recorded in 1690–1700; thunder + cloud

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.

A honeybee swarm has as much electric charge as a thundercloud, and the insects’ mass movements in the atmosphere might even have some influence on the weather.

From Scientific American • Sep. 13, 2023

The Independent's Helen Brown gave Skinty Fia - "a fierce, dirge-like thundercloud of ruination" - the same score.

From BBC • Apr. 23, 2022

A single unexpected bolt from a rogue thundercloud can be just as deadly to an individual, or as damaging to a property, as hundreds from a complex of storms.

From Washington Post • Apr. 19, 2022

The General Assembly is unfolding this week under a thundercloud of deep pessimism.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 22, 2021

“I don’t think anyone would care to try it, if you looked as much like a thundercloud as you do now. Why were you treated so?”

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023