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thunderhead

American  
[thuhn-der-hed] / ˈθʌn dərˌhɛd /

noun

Meteorology.
  1. incus.

  2. cumulonimbus.

  3. the upper portion of a cumulus cloud characterized by dense, sharply defined, cauliflowerlike upper parts and sometimes by great verticality.


thunderhead British  
/ ˈθʌndəˌhɛd /

noun

  1. the anvil-shaped top of a cumulonimbus cloud

"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

Etymology

Origin of thunderhead

An Americanism dating back to 1850–55; thunder + head

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.

Once a prehistoric denizen of the deeps, it comes ashore on a tsunami tide, tall as a thunderhead, shrugging off artillery as it bellows a foghorn scream.

From Scientific American • Nov. 3, 2023

A thunderhead towers above the rising sun, and the picture turns out beautifully.

From Slate • May 11, 2015

Early that morning, a towering thunderhead had rumbled in from the east, stripping branches from the cottonwoods and flooding the streets of Oklahoma City.

From The New Yorker • Dec. 1, 2014

I am often in awe of clouds, as was the case when I shot this video of a remarkable thunderhead somewhere over the Midwest.

From New York Times • Sep. 6, 2011

On the last day of his junior year, exactly two months after his life had burst like a thunderhead, Finn walked home from the bus stop past plants already up to his waist.

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby

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