rain cats and dogs

rain

R0025000 (rān)n.1. a. Water condensed from atmospheric vapor and falling in drops.b. A fall of such water; a rainstorm.c. The descent of such water.d. Rainy weather.e. rains A rainy season.2. A heavy or abundant fall: a rain of fluffy cottonwood seeds; a rain of insults.v. rained, rain·ing, rains v.intr.1. To fall in drops of water from the clouds.2. To fall like rain: Praise rained down on the composer.3. To release rain.v.tr.1. To send or pour down.2. To give abundantly; shower: rain gifts; rain curses upon their heads.Phrasal Verb: rain out To force the cancellation or postponement of (an outdoor event) because of rain. Used in passive constructions: The ball game was rained out.Idiom: rain cats and dogs Informal To rain very heavily.

[Middle English, from Old English regn, rēn.]

rain′less adj.

Thesaurus

Verb

rain cats and dogs - rain heavily; "Put on your rain coat-- it's pouring outside!"rain buckets, pelt, stream, pourrain, rain down - precipitate as rain; "If it rains much more, we can expect some flooding"sheet - come down as if in sheets; "The rain was sheeting down during the monsoon"sluice, sluice down - pour as if from a sluice; "An aggressive tide sluiced across the barrier reef"

Translations

倾盆大雨

rain

(rein) noun1. water falling from the clouds in liquid drops. We've had a lot of rain today; walking in the rain; We had flooding because of last week's heavy rains.雨2. a great number of things falling like rain. a rain of arrows. 雨点般降落的东西（下雨般的）一阵 verb1. (only with it as subject) to cause rain to fall. I think it will rain today.下雨2. to (cause to) fall like rain. Arrows rained down on the soldiers.雨点般地落下ˈrainy adjective having (many) showers of rain. a rainy day; the rainy season; rainy weather. 下雨的，多雨的 ˈraininess noun 下雨，多雨 ˈrainbow noun the coloured arch sometimes seen in the sky opposite the sun when rain is falling. 彩虹ˈrain check: take a rain check (American) (to ask) to do something at a later time. Thanks for inviting me to dinner, but can I take a rain check on it? 延期，改日进行 ˈraincoat noun a waterproof coat worn to keep out the rain. 雨衣ˈraindrop noun a single drop of rain. 雨点ˈrainfall noun the amount of rain that falls in a certain place in a certain time. We haven't had much rainfall this year; the annual rainfall.降雨量ˈrain forest noun a thick tropical forest in a region where it rains a lot. 雨林ˈrain-gauge noun an instrument for measuring rainfall. 雨量器keep/save etc for a rainy day to keep (especially money) until one needs it or in case one may need it. 未雨绸缪rain cats and dogs to rain very hard. 倾盆大雨the rains (in tropical countries) the rainy season. 雨季(as) right as rain perfectly all right; completely well. 十分正确

rain cats and dogs

To rain extremely heavily. We were so disappointed that it rained cats and dogs for our whole vacation in Hawaii. We wanted to have a barbecue this weekend, but it's been raining cats and dogs since Friday evening.See also: and, cat, dog, rain

rain cats and dogs

Fig. to rain very hard. It's raining cats and dogs. Look at it pour! I'm not going out in that storm. It's raining cats and dogs.See also: and, cat, dog, rain

rain cats and dogs

Also, rain buckets. Rain very heavily, as in It was raining cats and dogs so I couldn't walk to the store, or It's been raining buckets all day. The precise allusion in the first term, which dates from the mid-1600s, has been lost, but it probably refers to gutters overflowing with debris that included sewage, garbage, and dead animals. Richard Brome used a version of this idiom in his play The City Wit (c. 1652), where a character pretending a knowledge of Latin translates wholly by ear, " Regna bitque/and it shall rain, Dogmata Polla Sophon/dogs and polecats and so forth." The variant presumably alludes to rain heavy enough to fill pails. See also: and, cat, dog, rain

rain cats and dogs

rain very hard. Despite much speculation, there is no consensus as to the origin of rain cats and dogs . Suggestions range from the supernatural (cats being associated with witches who were credited with raising storms, dogs being attendants upon Odin, the Scandinavian storm god) to the down-to-earth (animals in medieval times drowning in flooded streets in times of heavy rain and their bodies being assumed by the credulous to have fallen from the skies). Other versions of the saying are rain pitchforks and, in Britain, rain stair rods , which date from the early 19th century and mid 20th century respectively, and reflect the shaft-like appearance of heavy rain. Rain cats and dogs is first recorded in Jonathan Swift's Polite Conversation ( 1738 ).See also: and, cat, dog, rain

rain cats and ˈdogs

(also rain ˈbuckets) (informal) (usually used in progressive tenses) rain very heavily: We can’t possibly play golf today. It’s raining cats and dogs out there. ♢ It’s been raining buckets all morning.The expression ‘raining cats and dogs’ may come from Norse mythology. Cats were supposed to have an influence over the weather, while dogs were the signal of storms.See also: and, cat, dog, rain

rain cats and dogs

Informal To rain very heavily.See also: and, cat, dog, rain

rain cats and dogs

rain

rain

rain cats and dogs

rain cats and dogs

rain cats and dogs

rain cats and dogs

rain cats and dogs

rain cats and ˈdogs

rain cats and dogs

rain cats and dogs

Synonyms for rain cats and dogs

verb rain heavily

Synonyms

Related Words