"Cet arbre a été atteint par la foudre."

Translation: That tree has been hit by lightning.

[dbarber5]

:) I would like to hear the woman translate: "The monkey was holding an egg when it was hit by the lightning bolt."

[George418878]

Don't forget the powder.

[Shirlgirl007]

In the weather unit, lightening was a different word, which escapes me just now. Are they interchangeable?

[n6zs]

It's "lightning" (not "lightening"). "Foudre" is generally interchangeable with "éclair" except that you would likely say "éclair" if it's in the sky and "foudre" if it strikes/hits something on the ground. One may also say "il a été frappé par la foudre" = it/he was struck by lightning.

[johndelaroo]

Je pense que la foudre est "lightning generally" whereas "un éclair" is a bolt of lightning.

[RuthZ1..]

Quelle est la différence entre la foudre et l'éclair ?
"La foudre est une décharge électrique gigantesque qui se forme entre les nuages et le sol . La foudre se compose de l'éclair et du tonnere : un flash de lumière géant et une explosion sonore impressionnante."

[GScottOliver]

2018-05-31 What is the source of that definition? It says that la foudre includes both lightning and thunder, but the context in this sentence and in n6zs's comment indicate that it is understood to be only lightning.

[elysealexandra]

So it sounds like foudre is what we call the lightning bolt.

[MishaLavrov]

Would it also be acceptable to say "this tree was hit by the lightning bolt?"