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
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thunderstrike
Verb
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Homendy said the helicopter altimeter discrepancy is what surprised her the most in this investigation.—
Sam Sweeney,
ABC News,
27 Jan. 2026 -
Samsung has surprised users in recent months with some security fixes for devices even after support has ended.—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In one camp Gao Sheng breaks a cultural norm by helping her father and uncles with a big project, amazing her relatives with her physical and mental strength.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
18 Jan. 2026
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An artist who never fails to amaze me.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Nix’s season-ending injury and the subsequent news that Stidham would be starting in the AFC Championship shocked the NFL world.—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
24 Jan. 2026
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The filing brings to an end an unusual saga that shocked Georgia’s political world after cameras captured Durand enter the PSC hearing room during a recess before taking the booklet from the commission’s downtown Atlanta offices.—
Drew Kann,
AJC.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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So we were stunned to read about how Sean Harden, chair of the Chicago Board of Education as duly appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson, reportedly had launched two internal investigations into how that board’s super-secret business got into the hands of reporters.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
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Others were stunned by individual line items.—
Ashley Vega,
PEOPLE,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The exchange startled Loftus, who this month shared the correspondence with the Orlando Sentinel.—
Jeffrey Schweers,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 Jan. 2026
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YouTube’s growth as a competitor to traditional television has startled the industry in recent years.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The Royals lost 106 games in his first season but astonished the baseball world by making the playoffs in 2024.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
5 Jan. 2026
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Researchers studying the carcasses of bats in a cave system were astonished to find evidence that common rats have developed a method of catching and eating bats mid-flight—something previously unknown to science.—
Popular Science Team,
Popular Science,
17 Dec. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Thunderstrike.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thunderstrike. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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