Lightening vs Lightning
Lightening means making lighter or brighter; whereas, Lightning is the bright flashes of light in the sky,usually followed by a crack of thunder.
Explanation
Mark Twain had said "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is a really large matter—it’s the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."
Lightening is a present participle corresponding to the verb lighten, where to lighten is to make light or lighter. It refers to the process of making something lighter in color or in weight. "I’m lightening my jeans by adding bleach to the wash. The dark blue will become light blue."
"The trick to lightening a cake is using beaten egg whites."
Lightning refers to an abrupt, discontinuous natural electric discharge in the atmosphere—i.e., the flash of light associated with thunder.
The noun lightning refers to the flash of light that accompanies thunder.
"The lightning storm caused the forest fire."
"Electricity is really just organized lightning."
As an adjective, lightning describes things that happen very quickly.
"He fixed my car with lightning speed."
There is a proverb using the word lightning: ‘lightning never strikes twice in the same place’ which implies that an unusual situation or event is unlikely to happen again in exactly the same circumstances or to the same person.
The use of lightning can also be done in phrases as: ‘like (greased) lightning’ meaning ‘Very quickly’.
"He leaped over the tailboard of the lorry like greased lightning."
Tricks to Remember the Difference
1) Remember this mnemonic sentence – “The lightning is lightening the darkened night sky.”
2) Lightening is to lighten something. It is the opposite of darken or darkening. This is easy to remember because the word lighten in is lightening.
3) Since a bolt of lightning usually zaps the life out of whatever it hits, think of the lightning bolt zapping the “e” out of the word.
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This article has been shared by Priti Saraf. Though a CA by profession, teaching is her passion. She suggests this joyful way of building English Grammar and wherein one cam simultaneously learn their practical use as well.
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