雷（かみなり、kaminari）
- thunder

The Japanese word 雷, pronounced かみなり (kaminari), refers to thunder. It's the loud sound that follows a lightning flash. It can also figuratively refer to something that is sudden and impactful, or even a person with a booming voice.

⚫︎雷が鳴っている。 Translation: The thunder is rumbling. ⚫︎ 激しい雷雨だった。 Translation: It was a violent thunderstorm. ⚫︎ 彼はまるで雷のように怒った。 Translation: He got angry like thunder.

You use 雷 when you're talking about the sound of thunder. ⚫︎ You can use it in descriptions of weather. ⚫︎ You can also use it metaphorically to describe something startling or a person's loud voice. ⚫︎ Be mindful of the context as its meaning can shift depending on the situation.

⚫︎ The word is most commonly written with the kanji 雷. ⚫︎ The reading, かみなり, is usually written in hiragana. ⚫︎ There are no variations in okurigana (the suffix hiragana).

There aren't many direct synonyms for thunder, but words related to storms or loud sounds can be used: ⚫︎ 稲妻(inazuma) - lightning. It is closely related to thunder. ⚫︎ 豪雨(gouu) - heavy rain ⚫︎ 轟音(gouon) - roaring sound

There aren't direct antonyms for 雷. However, words related to silence, calm weather, or a quiet atmosphere could be considered antonyms in a figurative sense. ⚫︎ 静寂(seijaku) - silence. ⚫︎ 穏やか(odayaka) - calm.

昨夜はものすごい雷だった。 ・Translation: Last night, the thunder was incredible. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the intensity of the thunder during a storm.

あの人の声はまるで雷のようだ。 ・Translation: That person's voice is like thunder. ・Explanation: This sentence uses 雷 metaphorically to describe someone's booming voice.

The word 雷 is believed to be a compound word. かみ (kami) means "god" or "spirit" and なり(nari) is the stem form of the verb 鳴る(naru) meaning "to sound" or "to ring". Therefore, it is often interpreted as the "voice of the gods".