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Verb Form of Lightning?

16 replies
1 2
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I've been trying to figure out the correct way to use lightning in verb form. If I were to say, "It is thundering and lightninging outside," would that be correct?

Edit: I'm amazed that I don't know simple things like this, and English is my first language. I suppose growing up in "The South" doesn't help any.
New Member14
:
My english professor once told me that it should be "It's thundering and lightening outside." and not lightninging. Too bad I wasn't able to ask him that time why can't we just add "ing" to the word.

Ciao,

IF [A]
Contributing Member1,408
:
Shouldn't it be:
I'm amazed that I don't know a simple thing like this, whereas I'm amazed that I don't know simple things like these?
(simple things=plural=these)
Full Member393
:
WesternAmerican
Shouldn't it be:
I'm amazed that I don't know a simple thing like this, whereas I'm amazed that I don't know simple things like these?
(simple things=plural=these)

There's nothing wrong with his grammar.

I'm amazed that I don't know simple things like this - referring to the topic he brought up, which is the usage of lightninging and the topic is only one..

Ciao,

IF [A]
:
I searched "lightning" on the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary ( http://www.m-w.com / ), and I found an inflected form of the intransitive verb form of lightning, which was "lightninged." So, my question is, if you can add the -ed ending to it, does that allow you to also apply the -ing ending?
:
www.m-w.com gives lightning and lightninged as the inflected forms under the entry lightning. There is no lightninging; it's lightning.

It [is / was] lightning. It lightninged.

Personally, I don't hear lightninged. I hear There was a flash of lightning.

Under the entry lighten, there's the alternate lighten, lightening, lightened.

It [is / was] lightening. It lightened.

These sound more familar to me.

CJ
Veteran Member45,859
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:
I think being surrounded by rednecks, who can hardly write, much less speak proper English, doesn't help at all. The reason I keep asking this is I ran into a song titled "Thundering and Lightninging." I know song writers are hardly English majors, but I've seen a few correct lyrics and titles here and there.
:
The songwriter probably just needed one more syllable to match the number of notes in the melody! Emotion: smile

CJ
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:
Ughh. Why does meter always mess up everything? Hahaha.
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