thunderstroke

American  

[thuhn-der-strohk] / ˈθʌn dərˌstroʊk /

noun

1. a stroke of lightning accompanied by thunder.

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Etymology

Origin of thunderstroke

First recorded in 1580–90; thunder + stroke ¹

Example Sentences

"It is one of the mysteries of nature," he said in 1906, after his favorite daughter Susy died of meningitis at 24, "that a man, all unprepared, can receive a thunderstroke like that and live."

From Time Magazine Archive

To her hearer the final phrase was like a thunderstroke.

From Demos by Gissing, George

It had been almost silent along the lines when the enemy's batteries opened fire with one enormous thunderstroke, which was followed by continuous salvos.

From Now It Can Be Told by Gibbs, Philip

My father was then in the zenith of his prosperity, and was absorbed in his affairs; yet this loss—this heavy blow—came upon him like a thunderstroke.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 54, No. 335, September 1843 by Various

This was a thunderstroke to the unfortunate cavalier.

From The Sea: Its Stirring Story of Adventure, Peril, & Heroism. Volume 3 by Whymper, Frederick