thunderbolt

English

Etymology

From thunder + bolt.

Noun

thunderbolt ‎(plural thunderbolts)

1. A flash of lightning accompanied by an instant crash of thunder.
2. (figuratively) An event that is terrible, horrific or unexpected.
   • Dryden

     the Scipios' worth, those thunderbolts of war

3. Vehement threatening or censure; especially, ecclesiastical denunciation; fulmination.
   • Hakewill

     He severely threatens such with the thunderbolt of excommunication.

4. (soccer) A very powerful shot.
   • 2011 February 5, Michael Kevin Darling, “Tottenham 2 - 1 Bolton”, in BBC^[1]:

     Substitute Niko Kranjcar's injury-time thunderbolt gave Tottenham a dramatic win over Bolton.

5. (paleontology) A belemnite, or thunderstone.
6. (heraldry) A charge in the form of two joined bundles with four rays of lightning emerging from them, resembling the thunderbolt of Jupiter.

Derived terms

• thunderbolt beetle

See also

• thunderclap

Translations

flash of lightning accompanied by thunder

• Arabic: صَاعِقَة ‎(ṣāʿiqa)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 霹靂 (zh), 霹雳 (zh) ‎(pīlì), 迅雷 (zh) ‎(xùnléi)

• Chuvash: ҫиҫӗм ‎(śiśĕm)
• Dutch: bliksemstraal (nl), donderstraal, donderslag (nl)
• Finnish: salamanisku (fi), ukkosenjyrähdys
• French: coup de tonnerre (fr) m
• Friulian: folc m, saete f, sfulmin
• German: Donnerkeil m, Blitzstrahl m, Blitz mit Donnerschlag m
• Greek: κεραυνός (el) m ‎(keravnós), αστραπή (el) f ‎(astrapí)
• Hungarian: villámcsapás (hu)
• Istriot: sàita f
• Italian: fulmine (it), folgore (it), saetta (it), lampo (it)
• Japanese: 雷 (ja) ‎(かみなり, kaminari), 落雷 (ja) ‎(らくらい, rakurai)
• Norman: foudre f

• Korean: 벼락 (ko) ‎(byeorak)
• Latin: fulmen n
• Low German: Blitzsteen m
• Maori: epa
• Persian: رعد و برق ‎(ra'd-o-barq), صاعقه (fa) ‎(sâ'eqe), آذرخش (fa) ‎(âzaraxš)
• Portuguese: raio (pt) m
• Romanian: fulger (ro) n
• Russian: уда́р мо́лнии m ‎(udár mólnii)
• Sanskrit: नरक (sa) ‎(naraka), वज्र (sa) ‎(vajra)
• Spanish: rayo (es) m
• Swedish: vigg (sv) c, tordön (sv) c, åskknall (sv) c
• Tajik: соиқа (tg) ‎(soyiqa)
• Telugu: పిడుగు (te) ‎(piḍugu)
• Venetian: sita f, saéta f
• Welsh: taranau, taranfollt

an event that is terrible, horrific or unexpected

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: järkytys (fi)
• Greek: κεραυνός (el) m ‎(keravnós)

• Korean: 벼락 (ko) ‎(byeorak)
• Russian: please add this translation if you can
• Spanish: please add this translation if you can
• Telugu: పిడుగుపాటు ‎(piḍugupāṭu)