Definition of 'rain'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present
tense rains
, present participle raining
, past tense, past participle rained
1. uncountable noun [oft the NOUN]
Rain is water that falls from the clouds in small drops.
2. plural noun
4. verb
Rain down means the same as rain.
5. singular noun [NOUN of noun]
6.
7.
See as right as rain
8.
See rain or shine
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Video: pronunciation of
rain
rain in British English
noun
1.
a.
precipitation from clouds in the form of drops of water, formed by the condensation of water vapour in the atmosphere
3. See rain or shine
4. See right as rain
verb
6. (often with it as subject)
to fall or cause to fall like rain
the lid flew off and popcorn rained on everyone
9. See rained off
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
rainless (ˈrainless) adjective
Word origin
Old English regn; related to Old Frisian rein, Old High German regan, Gothic rignrain in American English
verb intransitive
5.
to fall
said of rain, and usually in an impersonal construction it is raining
6.
to fall like rain
bullets rained about him
7.
to cause rain to fall
said of the heavens, clouds, etc. verb transitive
9.
to give in large quantities
to rain praises on someone
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms
rainless (ˈrainless)
adjective
Word origin
ME rein < OE regn, akin to Ger regen < IE base *re-, var. of *reĝ-, moist, wet > L rigare, to wet, moisten: see irrigaterain in American English
(rein)
noun
1.
water that is condensed from the aqueous vapor in the atmosphere and falls to earth in drops more than 1⁄50 in. (0.5 mm) in diameter
Compare drizzle (sense 6)3. See rains
intransitive verb
6. (of rain)
to fall (usually used impersonally with it as subject)
It rained all night
7.
to fall like rain
Tears rained from their eyes
transitive verb
9.
to send down in great quantities, as small pieces or objects
People on rooftops rained confetti on the parade
12. See rain cats and dogs
13. See rain out
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
rainless adjective
rainlessness
noun
Word origin
[bef. 900; (n.) ME rein; OE regn, rēn, c. D, G regen, ON regn, Goth rign; (v.) ME reinen, OE regnian]Examples of 'rain' in a sentence
rain
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Word lists with
rain
Weather phenomenaQuick word challenge
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Question: 1
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Which weather phenomena am I?
an unusually large incoming wave, often caused by high winds and spring tides
Which weather phenomena am I?
a violent tropical storm or cyclone, esp in the China seas and W Pacific
Which weather phenomena am I?
a tropical cyclone
Which weather phenomena am I?
a strong miniature whirlwind that whips up dust, litter, leaves, etc into the air
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More idioms containing
rain
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rain
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In other languages
rain
British English: rain
/reɪn/ NOUN
Rain is water that falls from the clouds in small drops.
I hope you didn't get too wet standing out in the rain.
- American English: rain /ˈreɪn/
- Arabic: مَطَر
- Brazilian Portuguese: chuva
- Chinese: 雨
- Croatian: kiša
- Czech: déšť
- Danish: regn
- Dutch: regen
- European Spanish: lluvia
- Finnish: sade
- French: pluie
- German: Regen
- Greek: βροχή
- Italian: pioggia
- Japanese: 雨
- Korean: 비
- Norwegian: regn
- Polish: deszcz
- European Portuguese: chuva
- Romanian: ploaie
- Russian: дождь
- Latin American Spanish: lluvia
- Swedish: regn
- Thai: ฝน
- Turkish: yağmur
- Ukrainian: дощ
- Vietnamese: mưa
British English: rain
/reɪn/ VERB
When rain falls, you can say that it is raining.
It rained all weekend.
- American English: rain /ˈreɪn/
- Arabic: يـَمْطُرُ
- Brazilian Portuguese: chover
- Chinese: 下雨
- Croatian: kišiti
- Czech: pršet
- Danish: regne
- Dutch: regenen
- European Spanish: llover
- Finnish: sataa
- French: pleuvoir
- German: regnen
- Greek: βρέχει
- Italian: piovere
- Japanese: 雨が降る
- Korean: 비가 내리다
- Norwegian: regne
- Polish: padać
- European Portuguese: chover
- Romanian: a ploua
- Russian: идет дождь
- Latin American Spanish: llover
- Swedish: regna
- Thai: ฝนตก
- Turkish: yağmur yağmak
- Ukrainian: дощити
- Vietnamese: mưa
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rain
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Definition of rain from the Collins English Dictionary
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