lightningnoun/ˈlaɪt.nɪŋ/

• 1

  A flash of light produced by short-duration, high-voltage discharge of electricity within a cloud, between clouds, or between a cloud and the earth.

  • Although we did not see the lightning, we did hear the thunder.
  • Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are?
• 2

  A discharge of this kind.

  • The lightning was hot enough to melt the sand.
  • That tree was hit by lightning.
• 3

  Anything that moves very fast.

  • Nobs, though, was lightning by comparison with the slow thinking beast and dodged his opponent's thrust with ease. Then he raced to the rear of the tremendous thing and seized it by the tail.
• 4

  archaicslangGin.

  • I took some gin but it did little to calm my mood. […] 'Come now, Bess,' she entreated, and poured another glass of lightning. 'Tell your old mother everything.' I took a gulp of the spirit, then babbled all, showing her the loot now in my possession.

lightningadj/ˈlaɪt.nɪŋ/

• 1

  Extremely fast or sudden; moving (as if) at the speed of lightning.

  • The insurgents then began their lightning advance along the Euphrates in the Sunni heartland toward Baghdad.

lightningverb/ˈlaɪt.nɪŋ/

• 1

  To produce lightning.

  • Or if it thundered and lightninged, Aunt Frances always dropped everything she might be doing and held Elizabeth Ann tightly in her arms until it was all over.
  • The next day, though it is not only raining but thundering and lightninging as well, antiquing is seen by three-fourths of those present as a lesser evil than free play.

這個拼法也被記錄為下列字的變化形：

• lightening