Crossword Clue: Sound after lightning
Here's the answer to the Sound after lightning crossword clue, with an explanation and where it has appeared.
Definition & answer: THUNDER
The answer to "Sound after lightning" is THUNDER. Thunder is a 7-letter word made up of 2 vowels and 5 consonants, beginning with T and ending with R. In a crossword grid it occupies a 7-square slot, and each of its letters also forms part of a word crossing it — so even if the clue stumps you, the crossing entries will usually hand you enough letters to fill it in.
Origin & meaning
Thunder is the sound created when lightning rapidly heats the surrounding air, causing it to expand explosively. Because light travels faster than sound, counting the seconds between flash and rumble roughly estimates the storm's distance.
Common usage
Thunder turns up frequently in crosswords precisely because of that letter mix. Short, vowel-friendly words like THUNDER are a constructor's best friend: they interlock cleanly with longer entries and help a grid come together without awkward letter clashes. When you see a 7-letter slot and already have a crossing letter or two, THUNDER is often quick to confirm — especially once the T or R is in place.
Crossword trivia
Because it is only 7 letters long, THUNDER appears far more often in daily mini and themed puzzles than longer, more obscure words. Regular solvers come to recognize it on sight, and it is exactly the kind of entry worth committing to memory: the more common short words you know cold, the faster your solve times become.
Stuck on this clue?
If "Sound after lightning" has you stuck, don't force it — jump to the clues crossing this slot instead. Filling in even one or two intersecting letters usually makes THUNDER obvious. That crossing-first approach is the single most useful habit for improving at crosswords, and it works on everything from the quick daily Mini to a full Sunday grid.
This clue in different puzzles
Setters vary how they clue THUNDER — sometimes with a straight dictionary definition, sometimes with wordplay, a pun, or a fill-in-the-blank — but the answer itself stays the same. Learning to spot the answer behind the disguise is a core crossword skill.
Example sentences
- "I had the crossing letters, so writing THUNDER into the grid took no time at all."
- "Thunder is the kind of answer that clicks the moment you spot one letter."
- "Seeing 'Sound after lightning' in the clue list, an experienced solver pencils in THUNDER almost immediately."
- "Once the T was confirmed by the crossing word, THUNDER was the only entry that fit."