often attributive
rained; raining; rains
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
Synonyms
Examples of rain in a Sentence
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.
Recent Examples on the Web
Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2025
On March 26, 2023, after months of heavy rain, a landslide swept away their home, destroying all their possessions and killing Manuela’s grandparents.
—Jordan Salama, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Confetti rained down on the crowd and fireworks lit up the sky as the clock struck midnight.
—Adam Tamburin, Axios, 2 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for rain 
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Noun
Downtown Los Angeles hasn’t recorded over a tenth of an inch of rain since May 5.
—Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2025
On March 26, 2023, after months of heavy rain, a landslide swept away their home, destroying all their possessions and killing Manuela’s grandparents.
—Jordan Salama, The New Yorker, 6 Jan. 2025
Verb
Large chunks of pumice stone apparently rained down around the volcano, and the dark column of smoke could be seen from over 300 miles away.
—Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Confetti rained down on the crowd and fireworks lit up the sky as the clock struck midnight.
—Adam Tamburin, Axios, 2 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for rain
Dictionary Entries Near rain
Cite this Entry
“Rain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rain. Accessed 14 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
rain
2 of 2 verb1
: to fall as water in drops from the clouds
2
: to send down rain
3
: to fall like rain
ashes rained from the volcano
4
: to give in large amounts
rained blows on each other
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