1
: the flashing of light produced by a discharge of atmospheric electricity
also
: the discharge itself
2
: a sudden stroke of fortune
candidates … hoping for real lightning to strike—
Time
Time
: having or moving with or as if with the speed and suddenness of lightning
a lightning assault
Synonyms
Examples of lightning in a Sentence
Adjective
thoughts moving at lightning speed
he made a lightning dash for the goal
Recent Examples on the WebTom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 11 Apr. 2024
Remember, lightning can strike out to 10 miles from the parent thunderstorm.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 Apr. 2024
Severe storms are not likely, but lightning is a potential threat.
—Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 10 Apr. 2024
End of carousel Amazon has made deliveries lightning quick with its sophisticated technology (and building oodles of warehouses) to spread pallets of products around the country.
—Shira Ovide, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024
Even Lady Liberty was hit by rumbling thunderstorms, struck by a bolt of lightning Wednesday evening around 6 p.m. in a stunning moment captured by a photographer from Liberty State Park in New Jersey.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
Chance of lightning increases as a thunderstorm approaches and peaks when the storm is overhead.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Apr. 2024
Much of the series was filmed on location in the U.K. during a period of inclement weather that encompassed both lightning storms and heatwaves.
—K.j. Yossman, Variety, 29 Mar. 2024
One of the creatures spat out by the Earth in self-defense against us careless people is Battra, a dark version of Mothra with a kick-ass lightning bolt pattern on its wings and a horn that shoots electricity.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 28 Mar. 2024
Dallas News, 17 Oct. 2022
As art, the districts are a whimsical collection of fire-breathing dragons, lightning bolts and doodlebugs.
—Dallas News, 3 Jan. 2023
This approach is still not lightning quick; red kidney beans take longer to get tender than many varieties.
—Joe Yonan, Washington Post, 11 Dec. 2022
Actress Bevin Prince has given an emotional first on-camera interview to Good Morning America about the death of her husband, who was fatally struck by lightning over the summer.
—Brendan Morrow, The Week, 9 Dec. 2022
Civilization goes, the mind goes, and the God of the Upanishads speaks in syllables of thunder, the whole scene strobed by lightning bolts and the shock editing of life flashing before your eyes.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 8 Dec. 2022
Friend, who was CEO of digital media company Bisnow at the time, was pronounced dead after he was struck by lightning during a family boat outing on Sunday, July 3.
—Glenn Garner, Peoplemag, 3 Dec. 2022
Cuba suffered an earlier natural disaster, just weeks before the hurricane, when lightning hit a major oil storage facility in Matanzas, east of Havana, causing a massive blaze that burned for days, contributing to fuel shortages.
—Karen Deyoung, Anchorage Daily News, 19 Oct. 2022
The Cedar Creek Fire about 150 miles south of Portland, Oregon, was started by lightning Aug. 1 and was still burning Saturday.
—Dennis Romero, NBC News, 16 Oct. 2022
Noun
The game ended just a few minutes before lightning was detected within eight miles of the stadium, making the move to a first pitch at 1 p.m., two hours earlier than scheduled, a smart one.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 11 Apr. 2024
Remember, lightning can strike out to 10 miles from the parent thunderstorm.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 Apr. 2024
Severe storms are not likely, but lightning is a potential threat.
—Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 10 Apr. 2024
End of carousel Amazon has made deliveries lightning quick with its sophisticated technology (and building oodles of warehouses) to spread pallets of products around the country.
—Shira Ovide, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024
Even Lady Liberty was hit by rumbling thunderstorms, struck by a bolt of lightning Wednesday evening around 6 p.m. in a stunning moment captured by a photographer from Liberty State Park in New Jersey.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2024
Chance of lightning increases as a thunderstorm approaches and peaks when the storm is overhead.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Apr. 2024
Much of the series was filmed on location in the U.K. during a period of inclement weather that encompassed both lightning storms and heatwaves.
—K.j. Yossman, Variety, 29 Mar. 2024
One of the creatures spat out by the Earth in self-defense against us careless people is Battra, a dark version of Mothra with a kick-ass lightning bolt pattern on its wings and a horn that shoots electricity.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 28 Mar. 2024
Verb
The bar also has a basketball court — put in after a tree was struck by lightning and fell over into the parking lot.
—Dallas News, 17 Oct. 2022
As art, the districts are a whimsical collection of fire-breathing dragons, lightning bolts and doodlebugs.
—Dallas News, 3 Jan. 2023
This approach is still not lightning quick; red kidney beans take longer to get tender than many varieties.
—Joe Yonan, Washington Post, 11 Dec. 2022
Actress Bevin Prince has given an emotional first on-camera interview to Good Morning America about the death of her husband, who was fatally struck by lightning over the summer.
—Brendan Morrow, The Week, 9 Dec. 2022
Civilization goes, the mind goes, and the God of the Upanishads speaks in syllables of thunder, the whole scene strobed by lightning bolts and the shock editing of life flashing before your eyes.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 8 Dec. 2022
Friend, who was CEO of digital media company Bisnow at the time, was pronounced dead after he was struck by lightning during a family boat outing on Sunday, July 3.
—Glenn Garner, Peoplemag, 3 Dec. 2022
Cuba suffered an earlier natural disaster, just weeks before the hurricane, when lightning hit a major oil storage facility in Matanzas, east of Havana, causing a massive blaze that burned for days, contributing to fuel shortages.
—Karen Deyoung, Anchorage Daily News, 19 Oct. 2022
The Cedar Creek Fire about 150 miles south of Portland, Oregon, was started by lightning Aug. 1 and was still burning Saturday.
—Dennis Romero, NBC News, 16 Oct. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lightning.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lightning
Cite this Entry
“Lightning.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lightning. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
lightning
1 of 2 noun
light·ning
ˈlīt-niŋ 
: the flashing of light produced by a discharge of atmospheric electricity from one cloud to another or between a cloud and the earth
also
: the discharge itself
lightning
2 of 2 adjective
: moving or done with or as if with the speed of lightning
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