1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

thunderstrike

verb

ˈthən-dər-ˌstrīk How to pronounce thunderstrike (audio)
Definition of thunderstrikenext
as in to surprise
to make a strong impression on (someone) with something unexpected everyone was thunderstruck when she quit her job without warning

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for thunderstrike
  1. surprise
  2. amaze
  3. shock
  4. stun
  5. startle
  6. astonish
Verb
  • Woody‘s and Matthew’s personas, which is to also say those of Harrelson and McConaughey, are too well established, their personalities too big to surprise you, however bad things might turn.
    — Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Read the contract as closely as the brochure, and none of it will surprise you.
    — Kevin Henneman, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of surprise
Verb
  • And especially with the stock market—I’m amazed the stock market still hasn’t really taken the hit.
    — Victoria Feng, The Atlantic, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Perhaps what amazed me the most was the breadth and the depth to which a general American public seemed to be at a tipping point around the exorbitant cost of health care and how cavernous the gap is between the one percent and the 99 percent.
    — Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of amaze
Verb
  • Fans are shocked at how badly the rebuilding Dolphins have looked in their first two games.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Other people who knew Campbell Ortiz from her nightclub work were equally shocked by her death.
    — Roni Jacobson, New York Daily News, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of shock
Verb
  • Speculation the two were romantically linked first surfaced in 2020, but by February 2021, Rodgers stunned fans by revealing he was engaged while accepting his third NFL MVP award.
    — Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Lamont told reporters that he was stunned that Diamantis was able to slip through the cracks and flee to Greece.
    — Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of stun
Verb
  • As if triggered by this thought, the door buzzed itself open, startling the pigeons from wire to wing, a grand scattering.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Their approach startled the predator, who took off with the mother godwit in its claws.
    — Rivka Galchen, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of startle
Verb
  • The astonished looks on his team-mates’ faces would underline that fact.
    — Beren Cross, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The crowd in the picture was equally astonished while the event unfolded.
    — Monisha Ravisetti, Space.com, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of astonish
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

thunderstorms
thunderstrike
thunderstrikes
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Thunderstrike.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thunderstrike. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All