rain
1 of 2noun
ˈrān 
often attributive
1
a
: water falling in drops condensed from vapor in the atmosphere
b
: the descent of this water
c
: water that has fallen as rain : rainwater
2
a
: a fall of rain : rainstorm
b
rains plural : the rainy season
3
: rainy weather
4
: a heavy fall
a rain of arrows
rain
2 of 2verb
rained; raining; rains
intransitive verb
1
: to send down rain
2
: to fall as water in drops from the clouds
3
: to fall like rain
soot and ash rained down
transitive verb
1
: to pour down
2
: to give or administer abundantly
rained blows on his head
Synonyms
Noun
- cloudburst
- deluge
- downfall
- downpour
- rainfall
- rainstorm
- storm
- wet
Verb
- pour
- precipitate
- storm
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Noun The weatherman forecasts rain for this afternoon. Everyone went inside when the rain began to fall. What the garden needs is a good, soaking rain. A light rain began to fall. There has been some flooding due to the recent heavy rains. We've had a week of rain. The rains came and flooded the valley. Verb Sparks from the fireworks rained on the field. The volcano rained ashes on the city. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Christine Fernando, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2022 Police said heavy rain and strong winds could have contributed to the crash. Angela Cordoba Perez, The Arizona Republic, 8 Sep. 2022 The heat and drought relief offered by such rain would be beneficial in this exceptionally dry region. Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 7 Sep. 2022 Many cantilever umbrellas feature a polyester canopy, which can make for strong protection against rain and light wind and is soft to the touch. Rachel Simon, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Sep. 2022 Wind and rain will also determine how much electricity European nations can produce from cheap renewable sources. Georgi Kantchev, WSJ, 6 Sep. 2022 By early next week, remnants of Danielle could impact the United Kingdom, bringing rain and wind to the region. Jennifer Gray, CNN, 5 Sep. 2022 The chance of several inches of rain and scattered storms will put a damper on Labor Day plans stretching from the Gulf Coast states up to the Northeast. Fox News, 5 Sep. 2022 The start of the game was delayed 1 hour and 28 minutes by rain. Steve Overbey, ajc, 4 Sep. 2022 Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 1 Sep. 2022 Tickets could rain down like confetti at a Warriors championship parade. Heather Knight, San Francisco Chronicle, 6 Aug. 2022 Several thousand meteors rain down on Earth every day, but most of them are the size of pebbles and occur over the ocean, uninhabited regions, or during the day. Paul Best, Fox News, 26 July 2022 Not even the cloudy weather and sporadic showers were going to rain on the spectators' parades. Sophie Dweck, Town & Country, 12 May 2022 Some, however, decided to rain on that parade by taking aim at a very specific target: Pride flags. Nathan Grayson, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2022 However, the judgment of your peers could begin to rain on your parade. Chicago Tribune, 4 Aug. 2022 Ukrainian and Western officials have accused Russia of using the Zaporizhzhia facility as a shelter for its artillery and rocket systems that rain fire on Ukrainian positions on the other side of the Dnipro River. Yaroslav Trofimov, WSJ, 12 Aug. 2022 The forecast for Thursday is contingent on the front pushing far enough south for humidity to fall and rain chances to diminish. Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 8 Aug. 2022 See More
Noun
After battering parts of Mexico with punishing rainfall and high winds, Hurricane Kay is forecast to bring heavy rain and wind gusts to Southern California by Friday, according to the weather service. Christine Fernando, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2022 Police said heavy rain and strong winds could have contributed to the crash. Angela Cordoba Perez, The Arizona Republic, 8 Sep. 2022 The heat and drought relief offered by such rain would be beneficial in this exceptionally dry region. Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 7 Sep. 2022 Many cantilever umbrellas feature a polyester canopy, which can make for strong protection against rain and light wind and is soft to the touch. Rachel Simon, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Sep. 2022 Wind and rain will also determine how much electricity European nations can produce from cheap renewable sources. Georgi Kantchev, WSJ, 6 Sep. 2022 By early next week, remnants of Danielle could impact the United Kingdom, bringing rain and wind to the region. Jennifer Gray, CNN, 5 Sep. 2022 The chance of several inches of rain and scattered storms will put a damper on Labor Day plans stretching from the Gulf Coast states up to the Northeast. Fox News, 5 Sep. 2022 The start of the game was delayed 1 hour and 28 minutes by rain. Steve Overbey, ajc, 4 Sep. 2022 Verb
Don’t rain on Lea Michele’s parade on this of all weeks. Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 1 Sep. 2022 Tickets could rain down like confetti at a Warriors championship parade. Heather Knight, San Francisco Chronicle, 6 Aug. 2022 Several thousand meteors rain down on Earth every day, but most of them are the size of pebbles and occur over the ocean, uninhabited regions, or during the day. Paul Best, Fox News, 26 July 2022 Not even the cloudy weather and sporadic showers were going to rain on the spectators' parades. Sophie Dweck, Town & Country, 12 May 2022 Some, however, decided to rain on that parade by taking aim at a very specific target: Pride flags. Nathan Grayson, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2022 However, the judgment of your peers could begin to rain on your parade. Chicago Tribune, 4 Aug. 2022 Ukrainian and Western officials have accused Russia of using the Zaporizhzhia facility as a shelter for its artillery and rocket systems that rain fire on Ukrainian positions on the other side of the Dnipro River. Yaroslav Trofimov, WSJ, 12 Aug. 2022 The forecast for Thursday is contingent on the front pushing far enough south for humidity to fall and rain chances to diminish. Jason Samenow, Washington Post, 8 Aug. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English reyn, from Old English regn, rēn; akin to Old High German regan rain
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Phrases Containing rain
Kids Definition
rain 1 of 2
noun
ˈrān
1
: water falling in drops from the clouds
2
: a fall of water in drops from the clouds
3
: rainy weather
"Are you going to sleep out in all this rain?" E. B. White, Stuart Little
E. B. White, Stuart Little4
: a heavy fall of objects
rain
2 of 2verb
rained; raining
1
: to fall as water in drops from the clouds
2
: to send down rain
The clouds rained for days.
3
: to fall in large amounts
Ashes rained from the volcano.
4
: to give in large amounts
Friends rained advice on me.
rain 1 of 2
noun
1
as in rainfall
a steady falling of water from the sky in significant quantity the rain continued for most of the day Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- rainfall
- storm
- downpour
- wet
- rainstorm
- thunderstorm
- precipitation
- weather
- deluge
- shower
- cloudburst
- downfall
- thundershower
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- drizzle
- mist
- spit
- sprinkle
- mizzle
- scud
2
as in hail
a heavy fall of objects the Norman invaders fled when the castle's defenders threw a rain of stones down upon them Synonyms & Similar Words
- hail
- shower
- barrage
- storm
- flood
- torrent
- bombardment
- volley
- rush
- cannonade
- fusillade
- eruption
- outbreak
- broadside
- salvo
- gush
- spate
- outburst
rain
2 of 2verb
1
as in to storm
to fall as water in a continuous stream of drops from the clouds it started raining early this morning and hasn't let up since Synonyms & Similar Words
- storm
- flood
- pour
- precipitate
- shower
- hail
- rain cats and dogs
- drown
- deluge
- spit
- squall
- swamp
- inundate
- engulf
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- mist
- drizzle
- spit
- sprinkle
- mizzle
2
as in to shower
to give readily and in large quantities she rained praise upon her graduating students the squadron rained bombs on the enemy's fortifications Synonyms & Similar Words
- shower
- pour
- lavish
- heap
- flood
- stream
- hail
- swamp
- overflow
- gush
- overwhelm
- inundate
- bombard
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- keep
- withhold
- reserve
- retain
- hold back