Definition

1. Noun:
   • A meteorological disturbance characterized by strong rising air currents, resulting in heavy precipitation (rain or hail) accompanied by thunder and lightning: An "electrical storm" is a storm where the primary defining feature is the presence of powerful electrical discharges (lightning) and the resulting acoustic shock (thunder) within clouds or between clouds and the ground.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The picnic was canceled due to an approaching electrical storm.
  • During the electrical storm, we lost power for several hours.
  • Pilots are trained to navigate around severe electrical storms.

Advanced Usage

• "to be caught in an electrical storm": to be outdoors or in a situation when such a storm begins.
  • The hikers were caught in a sudden electrical storm on the mountain.
• The term is often used interchangeably with "thunderstorm", though "electrical storm" can emphasize the lightning aspect.

Variants and Related Words

• Thunderstorm (n): A storm with thunder and lightning, typically also accompanied by heavy rain or hail. This is the most common synonym.
• Lightning storm (n): A term sometimes used to emphasize the visual electrical discharges.
• Storm (n): The general term for any disturbed atmospheric state, which includes electrical storms.

Synonyms

• Thunderstorm: A storm characterized by thunder and lightning.
• Tempest: A violent windy storm (can be literary; may or may not imply lightning specifically).

Related Phrases

• Electrical activity: A broader term for the presence of lightning and related phenomena in the atmosphere.
  • The radar shows intense electrical activity in the cell.

Related Idioms

• A bolt from the blue: Something sudden and unexpected, like a lightning bolt from a clear sky. This idiom originates from the phenomenon of lightning.
  • The news of his resignation was a bolt from the blue.

Noun

1. a storm resulting from strong rising air currents; heavy rain or hail along with thunder and lightning