What does thunderstorm mean?
Word: Thunderstorm
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Thunderstorm means a storm with thunder and lightning, and usually heavy rain and strong wind.
How do you spell thunderstorm?
Syllables: thun - der - storm
Tricky part: It is one word with no space or hyphen, and near the end the o comes before the r. Students often swap them and write thunderstrom.
Watch out for: thunderstrom, thunderstorme, thunder storm
Memory tip: Thunder rolls, then rain pours: near the end, the o rolls in before the r, never after it.
Thunderstorm in a sentence
Example 1: The cricket match stopped when a thunderstorm broke over the ground.
Example 2: Our dog hides under the bed during a thunderstorm.
Example 3: Fierce thunderstorms hit Kolkata in the hot months before the rainy season.
Fun Fact
You can tell how far away a storm is by counting the seconds between the flash and the thunder: every 3 seconds is roughly 1 kilometre.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Makeup
Choose the correctly spelt compound word:
a) waterfal
b) raincote
c) thunderstorm
d) sunshien
Show answer
c) thunderstorm. Waterfall ends in a double l, raincoat has oa and sunshine ends in ine; thunderstorm is spelt right.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
mutsrnhdtroe
a) thunderbolt
b) thunderstorm
c) northern
d) understood
Show answer
b) thunderstorm. Thunderbolt needs a b and an l, understood a second o, and northern a second n; all twelve letters, with an m at the end, make thunderstorm.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
When the thunderstorm ended, a bright rainbow apeared over the river.
a) apeared
b) thunderstorm
c) river
d) rainbow
Show answer
a) apeared. Appeared has a double p, as in appear.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) umbrella
b) drizzle
c) thunderstorm
d) monsoone
Show answer
d) monsoone. Monsoon ends in oon with no e after it; the other three are spelt right.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Why do we see lightning before we hear the thunder?
a) Thunder starts after the lightning ends.
b) Sound travels faster than light.
c) Clouds hold the sound back at first.
d) Light travels faster than sound.
Show answer
d) Light travels faster than sound.
2. Where is it safest to be in a thunderstorm?
a) in a swimming pool
b) on an open field
c) inside a building
d) under a lone tree
Show answer
c) inside a building
