thunderclap
/ˈθʌndɚˌklæp/
"thunderclap" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“thunderclap” is uncommon English (frequency #53,301 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #53,301
- frequency rank, English
- 3,151
- “T” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A sudden, loud thunder caused by a nearby lightning strike; a shock of thunder, as opposed to a reverberating rumble.
Corpus desk
Index EN-thunderclap · thunderclap · English
thunderclap · rank #53,301 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #53,301
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 3,151
- PHOTO-FINISH Tiana
Nearest frequency peer: Tiana (+1 rank slots)
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
Long-tail ranks near “thunderclap”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- testa
testa
46,704 corpus weight
- textural
textural
46,702 corpus weight
- thunderclap
thunderclap
46,700 corpus weight
- Tiana
Tiana
46,699 corpus weight
- Tikrit
Tikrit
46,698 corpus weight
- toki
toki
46,697 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “thunderclap” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | thunderclap |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈθʌndɚˌklæp/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Frequency rank | #53,301 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “thunderclap” in English
Rare enough to double-check
thunderclap is uncommon English at frequency #53,301 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈθʌndɚˌklæp/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
thunderclap doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From thunder + clap. The correct English form is thunderclap, spelled T-H-U-N-D-E-R-C-L-A-P.
Definition
- 1A sudden, loud thunder caused by a nearby lightning strike; a shock of thunder, as opposed to a reverberating rumble.
- 2A very loud fart.
- 3Something that makes a big, dramatic impact.
- 4Synonym of thunder word.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how thunderclap appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Thunderclaps that make them quake.
Ile home, and ſtarue, this croſſe, this peeuiſh hap, / Strikes dead my ſpirits like a thunderclap.
Etymology
From thunder + clap.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "thunderclap", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).