A sudden flash of light in the sky caused by electricity during a storm. It is often followed by thunder and can be very powerful and dangerous.
From Old English *lēohtning* meaning “a lighting or flashing,” from *lēoht* (light) plus a noun-forming suffix. The spelling lost one of its middle letters over time.
Lightning heats the air to hotter than the surface of the sun for a tiny instant, which is why the thunder is so explosive. The quick flash in the word ‘lightning’ hides truly extreme physics.
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