Translation guide
A single flash of lightning, often depicted as a jagged streak. In Japanese, the concept is usually expressed with words for lightning itself, with optional counters or descriptive terms to emphasize a single bolt.
Referring to one distinct streak or flash of lightning in the sky.
The most common word for a flash of lightning. Often used in literature and everyday speech.
A lightning bolt streaked across the sky.
General word for lightning or thunder. Can refer to a bolt when context is clear, but often implies the whole phenomenon.
A lightning bolt struck.
Literally 'rice-plant light', a slightly poetic term for a flash of lightning.
I saw a lightning bolt in the distance.
More technical or literary term for a flash of lightning.
A lightning bolt illuminated the area for an instant.
Emphasizing the impact of a lightning bolt hitting an object or the ground.
Using 'lightning bolt' metaphorically for something sudden, fast, or shocking.
There is no direct Japanese word for 'bolt' in the sense of a single lightning flash. Use 稲妻 or 雷 and rely on context or counters (e.g., 一筋の稲妻, 'one streak of lightning') if you need to emphasize a single bolt.
落雷で停電した。
A lightning bolt caused a power outage.
Idiom meaning 'a bolt from the blue', a sudden unexpected event.
The news hit me like a lightning bolt.