# lightning

/ˈɫaɪtnɪŋ/ (US) · /lˈaɪtnɪŋ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/lightning
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 2. extremely fast

adjective · CEFR B2

moving or happening very quickly.

For teachers: characterised by extreme speed or suddenness; often used metaphorically to describe reactions or movements.

- The boxer had lightning reflexes and avoided every punch.
- The company responded with lightning speed to the market crash, liquidating its most volatile assets before the end of the trading day.

### 3. to produce flashes

verb · CEFR B1 · Informal

to have flashes of lightning in the sky.

For teachers: to emit or produce lightning; used as an impersonal verb similar to 'it is raining'.

- It started to thunder and lightning just as we reached the car.
- The children were frightened because it had been lightning for over an hour without any sign of the storm passing.

### 4. gin

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Slang

an old, informal word for gin.

For teachers: a slang term for gin or strong spirits.

- The old sailor sat in the corner with a glass of blue lightning.
- In the nineteenth-century underworld, 'lightning' was a common cant term for the cheap, potent gin sold in urban slums.

## Examples

- The dark sky lit up with a sudden flash of lightning.
- The hikers decided to head back down the mountain as soon as they saw lightning on the horizon.
- While the visual spectacle of lightning is impressive, the rapid expansion of air caused by its intense heat is what generates the sonic boom we recognize as thunder.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.