What is the correct present continuous form of "thunder" and "lightning"?

While describing monsoon conditions, what is the correct way to describe the ongoing action of thunder and lightning flashes?

It is thundering

It is lightning

Are the above sentences correct?

Solution 1:

You can use It is thundering, but the verb to describe the accompanying flashes is lighten, so you say It is thundering and lightening. This use of lighten is well attested in the Oxford English Dictionary, but it isn't all that common.

Solution 2:

The answer is yes. It doesn't seem there is much argument that thundering is the correct verb form for "thunder happening right now". The question hinges on whether lightning is a valid verb for "lightning happening right now".

Merriam-Webster and American Heritage both say yes:

lightning --intr.v. -ninged, -ning, -nings. To discharge a flash of lightning.

Note that lightninged is the past tense and past participle, lightning is the present participle, and lightnings is the third person singular present tense in the above entry (transcribed from the American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition). The linked M-W entry also explicitly lists lightninged and lightning as participles.

The issue here seems to be that many people don't realize that when the dictionary lists lightning in the inflected forms, it isn't just repeating the main entry for the hell of it. It's really an inflected form. So please, use thundering and lightning with confidence.