thunder

[ thuhn-der ]
See synonyms for thunder on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a loud, explosive, resounding noise produced by the explosive expansion of air heated by a lightning discharge.

  2. any loud, resounding noise: the thunder of applause.

  1. a threatening or startling utterance, denunciation, or the like.

verb (used without object)
  1. to give forth thunder (often used impersonally with it as the subject): It thundered last night.

  2. to make a loud, resounding noise like thunder: The artillery thundered in the hills.

  1. to utter loud or vehement denunciations, threats, or the like.

  2. to speak in a very loud tone.

  3. to move or go with a loud noise or violent action: The train thundered through the village.

verb (used with object)
  1. to strike, drive, inflict, give forth, etc., with loud noise or violent action.

Idioms about thunder

  1. steal someone's thunder,

    • to use for one's own purposes and without the knowledge or permission of the originator the inventions or ideas of another.

    • to ruin or detract from the effect of a performance, remark, etc., by anticipating it.

Origin of thunder

1
before 900; (noun) Middle English thonder, thunder,Old English thunor; cognate with Dutch donder,German Donner;Old Norse thōrr Thor, literally, thunder; (v.) Middle English thondren,Old English thunrian, derivative of the v.; akin to Latin tonāre to thunder

Other words from thunder

  • thun·der·er, noun
  • thun·der·less, adjective
  • outthunder, verb (used with object)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use thunder in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for thunder

thunder

/ (ˈθʌndə) /


noun
  1. a loud cracking or deep rumbling noise caused by the rapid expansion of atmospheric gases which are suddenly heated by lightning

  2. any loud booming sound

  1. rare a violent threat or denunciation

  2. steal someone's thunder to detract from the attention due to another by forestalling him or her

verb
  1. to make (a loud sound) or utter (words) in a manner suggesting thunder

  2. (intr; with it as subject) to be the case that thunder is being heard

  1. (intr) to move fast and heavily: the bus thundered downhill

  2. (intr) to utter vehement threats or denunciation; rail

Origin of thunder

1
Old English thunor; related to Old Saxon thunar, Old High German donar, Old Norse thōrr; see Thor, Thursday

Derived forms of thunder

  • thunderer, noun
  • thundery, adjective

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

Scientific definitions for thunder

thunder

[ thŭndər ]


  1. The explosive noise that accompanies a stroke of lightning. Thunder is a series of sound waves produced by the rapid expansion of the air through which the lightning passes. Sound travels about 1 km in 3 seconds (about 1 mi in 5 seconds). The distance between an observer and a lightning flash can be calculated by counting the number of seconds between the flash and the thunder. See Note at lightning.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for thunder

thunder

The noise created when air rushes back into a region from which it has been expelled by the passage of lightning.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with thunder

thunder

see under steal someone's thunder.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.