RAINS Synonyms: 55 Similar and Opposite Words

rains 1 of 2

noun

plural of rain

as in storms

a steady falling of water from the sky in significant quantity the rain continued for most of the day

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in barrages

a heavy fall of objects the Norman invaders fled when the castle's defenders threw a rain of stones down upon them

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rains

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of rain

as in pours

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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in showers

to give readily and in large quantities she rained praise upon her graduating students the squadron rained bombs on the enemy's fortifications

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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 rains

Noun

Last week torrential rains triggered deadly mudslides and flooding in Cox’s Bazar, flattening shelters and killing more than a dozen people, including children. — Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 16 July 2026 Pakistan experiences heavy monsoon rains every year and the downpours frequently trigger floods and landslides that cause deaths and widespread damage. — ABC News, 14 July 2026 Earlier, at least 17 people were killed in the southern Philippines, mostly due to landslides that were set off by seasonal monsoon rains that Bavi intensified before the typhoon blew away toward Taiwan, Philippine officials said Saturday. — Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026 Two mornings of heavy rains have seen rainfall totals climb rapidly. — Kansas City Star, 10 July 2026 La Guaira had already endured a devastating tragedy in 1999, when torrential rains triggered catastrophic flooding and mudslides that wiped out entire communities, killed thousands and caused widespread destruction. — Sonia Osorio, Miami Herald, 8 July 2026 Haverhill installed a second bypass line to help better control the flow of sewage after two breaks and a massive sewage overflow for five days last week, helping secure the system as more rains threatened the temporary bypass Tuesday. — Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald, 7 July 2026

Verb

As God rains down sulfur and fire to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot’s wife glances back and turns into a pillar of salt. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026 This dust accumulates in the corners, lurks under the sofa, and rains down on your lampshades. — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 2 July 2026 Rain like it almost never rains in the desert around Las Vegas. — Eric Boodman, STAT, 23 Mar. 2026 Time seems to collapse in on itself when bombs keep dropping overhead, and the act of trying to visit a next-door neighbor becomes a matter of life or death as sniper fire rains down. — Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 21 Feb. 2026 That and the fact it never rains. — Lauren Bans, Vulture, 5 Jan. 2026 From his pulpit, Wicks rains down selectively vituperative fire and brimstone, with an eye toward provoking walkouts from unsuspecting visitors—say, a gay couple or a single mom. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 11 Dec. 2025 The dust is microscopic asteroid and comet debris that constantly rains in space, eventually making its way to Earth. — Regina G. Barber, NPR, 11 Nov. 2025 Sulfuric acid rains down through the sickly yellow sky but never reaches the lava-licked ground. — Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rains

Noun

The threat of catastrophic flooding won’t ease up until Friday, as storms drop rain at 2 to 4 inches per hour.

— Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 15 July 2026
What if our habits of normalization lead us to accept super storms and skimpy winters as normal?

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 July 2026

Definition of storms

Noun

As Kyiv intensifies drone strikes on Russian oil refineries, fueling gasoline shortages across multiple regions, Moscow answers with heavier missile barrages on Ukrainian cities and claims attacks on strategic Black Sea ports.

— Samya Kullab, Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2026
These strategic American missile defenses, in Israel and elsewhere in the region, significantly boosted Israeli defenses against Iranian barrages during that war.

— Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026

Definition of barrages

Verb

And, Anthropic’s CEO pours $1 million into a PAC pushing AI regulation.

— Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 16 July 2026
Down the rock at the Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo, the dining room pours rosé from Bandol and from Bellet, a Niçoise appellation so small that barely anyone outside the region can name it.

— Condé Nast Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 July 2026

Definition of pours

Verb

And when engines light, SpaceX has to fire off its water deluge system, which showers the launchpad with hundreds of thousands of gallons of water in mere moments to shield the vital infrastructure from the blaze of liftoff.

— Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 16 July 2026
The tiny handle is easy to maneuver, making short work of quick cleanups and everything showers alike.

— Sara Coughlin, Allure, 5 July 2026

Definition of showers

Noun

Recent storms and heavy rainfalls caused the area to flood again, prompting the city to jump back into action.

— Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 1 Apr. 2026
Wild extremes of temperature, a heat dome, a potent bomb cyclone blizzard, epic rainfalls and violent tornadoes have wreaked weather havoc across the nation.

— Doyle Rice, USA Today, 17 Mar. 2026

Definition of rainfalls

Noun

Officials said the warning systems built since last year’s catastrophic floods were activated in Kerr County in the early hours before water levels began to rise, allowing for people to react quickly to flooding threats.

— Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 17 July 2026
Dangerous floods are hitting southcentral Texas — a region that just marked one year since more than 130 people died in catastrophic flooding.

— Bill Chappell, NPR, 16 July 2026

Definition of floods

Verb

Again, an ammonium fluoride solution is one of the starting materials; the silicon dioxide simply precipitates out of this solution.

— ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 28 May 2026
The hydrogen sulfide reacts with the iron content of the egg yolk, which precipitates into iron sulfide, a green-colored mineral.

— Taylor Tobin, Southern Living, 2 Apr. 2026

Definition of precipitates

Verb

Bogost lavishes praise on hobbies (fly-fishing), crafts (knitting), and trades (woodworking) as ways to dwell in sensory experience.

— Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 17 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