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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to pour
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to lavish
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of rain
Fred Bear, Outdoor Life, 11 June 2026
Champlin Park 3, Andover 2 The Rebels survived a 69-minute rain delay in the seventh to earn the win.
—Dave Wright, Twin Cities, 11 June 2026
Shelby Grad, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026
Or, instead all its fragments may have scattered into the asteroid belt to rain down as angrites across the eons, says William Bottke, a solar system scientist at the Southwest Research Institute, who was uninvolved with the study.
—Jenna Ahart, Scientific American, 9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for rain
Noun
By morning the rain stopped, and the world began to look like a fit place to live.
—Fred Bear, Outdoor Life, 11 June 2026
Champlin Park 3, Andover 2 The Rebels survived a 69-minute rain delay in the seventh to earn the win.
—Dave Wright, Twin Cities, 11 June 2026
Verb
Inland Empire cities in the path of the notorious San Andreas fault haven’t ordered the retrofit or demolition of old brick buildings, which could rain debris capable of crushing pedestrians, cars and buses with deadly force onto sidewalks and streets during shaking.
—Shelby Grad, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026
Or, instead all its fragments may have scattered into the asteroid belt to rain down as angrites across the eons, says William Bottke, a solar system scientist at the Southwest Research Institute, who was uninvolved with the study.
—Jenna Ahart, Scientific American, 9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for rain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rain
Noun
-
Cristina was forecast to bring rainfall of 4 to 8 inches, with maximum totals of about 12 inches (30 centimeters), across coastal Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala through Thursday.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
8 June 2026
-
Combined with this spring’s heavy rainfall, lone star ticks and others thrive.—
Sophie Lindberg,
Kansas City Star,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
The storms may bring quarter-sized hail (1 inch) and wind gusts of up to 70 mph.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
14 June 2026
-
Some of the storms will be strong to severe and capable of damaging winds, large hail, and heavy downpours.—
Tammie Souza,
CBS News,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
The grounds crew got the tarp down just before the rain started pouring a few minutes later.—
Sarah Spencer,
AJC.com,
14 June 2026
-
Witte started Ritual Pour three years ago when JP Pfafflin, brewer at the famous Dovetail Brewery in Chicago, showed Witte Japanese pouring styles for beer.—
Em Sauter,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
Likewise, Wong’s bricks are beyond compare in the attention lavished on each individual building block.—
Lori Waxman,
Chicago Tribune,
10 June 2026
-
In one particularly confessional episode, the Belgian star lavishes his wife with praise while waxing lyrical about his past mistakes.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
County officials said the money would be used to repair roads, fix storm damage, maintain bridges and manage roadside vegetation.—
Nicole Buss,
Sacbee.com,
10 June 2026
-
Both items are nice to have in Arizona, where AC units run hard through summer and monsoon storms can leave roofs in need of repair.—
Sharon Wu,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
Noun
-
Anyone who arrived carrying an award was met with a barrage of congratulations and cheers.—
Leigh Nordstrom,
Footwear News,
8 June 2026
-
Iran launched additional barrages throughout Monday, targeting Israeli airbases in Nevatim and Tel Nof and a petrochemical plant in Haifa, according to a statement from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
Fans and former costars alike flooded social media with outpourings of appreciation for his talent and grief at his death.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
7 June 2026
-
The set design is centered around the flooded, burned down, and demolished house that appears in the album visuals and is somehow still standing despite it all.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
7 June 2026
Verb
-
Sometimes recruiters try to sell players, heaping praise on the targets and promising playing time.—
Mike DeFabo,
New York Times,
1 June 2026
-
Pete Davidson is heaping praise on ex-girlfriend Kim Kardashian for her recent TV and film roles.—
Kathleen Perricone,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rain. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
