Donner

thunder

noun DON-ner Rare

Usage Note

Donner is masculine (der Donner). Thunder follows lightning; the time gap between Blitz and Donner in seconds, divided by three, gives the approximate distance in kilometres. Thursday (Donnerstag, 'Thunder's day') is named after Donar, the Germanic god of thunder.

Examples

"Nach dem Blitz folgte ein lauter Donnerschlag."

Natural Translation

After the lightning came a loud thunderclap.

Literal Translation

After the lightning followed a loud thunder-clap.

Free starter pack

Building your German vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common German words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Related Words

Explore German by topic

GermanNow

How Long Does It Take to Learn German? Real Timeline

How long to learn German? Conversational B1 takes ~6–12 months, fluent B2 about 1.5–2.5 years part-time. Here's an honest, hours-based timeline by CEFR level.

June 9, 2026 5 min read

GermanNow

German Modal Verbs: Können, Müssen, Wollen and More

German modal verbs put the modal in position 2 and the real verb at the end. Master können, müssen, wollen and the rest with charts and clear examples.

June 5, 2026 5 min read

GermanNow

German Modal Particles: doch, mal, ja, eben

German modal particles doch, mal, ja, and eben add attitude, not meaning. Before/after examples show how to use each one so your German stops sounding stiff.

June 9, 2026 6 min read

GermanNow

Order Food in German: Restaurant Phrases

Order food in German with confidence: use ich hätte gern, read the Speisekarte, ask die Rechnung bitte, and handle zusammen oder getrennt like a local.

June 5, 2026 5 min read