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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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 rains

Noun

The park was scheduled to open last year, but was delayed when winter rains caused two major landslides along its cliffs, requiring significant shoring up to keep an emergency access route open. — Paul Rogers, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2026 Forecasters blame the weather pattern on a strengthening El Niño, which is suppressing tropical waves that typically bring heavy rains to the island. — Christopher Cann, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026 As the storm clouds meet colder air in the north, Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei will need to brace for rains into Thursday, CCTV said. — Reuters, NBC news, 10 Aug. 2026 Swain noted that heavy rains battered Spain in February prior to this summer’s heat waves. — Bloomberg, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2026 The path would be unusable during heavy rains, but Bar-Zemer and others say that would be less than 20 days each year. — Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026 The dark layer above it is thin and faint, meaning the rains that followed were weak, probably due to a cooled Indian Ocean sending less moisture inland. — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 9 Aug. 2026 Months prior, in March, heavy rains caused landslides and floods in Ethiopia’s southern Gamo Zone area, and over 100 people died. — Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026 Precautionary measure The rains caused a short circuit in a junction box, leading a lift station to malfunction, officials said. — Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 4 Aug. 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

Much of Northwest Indiana remains without power as residents there started cleaning up debris from severe storms.

— Marissa Sulek, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
The elderly woman who was killed by a blast as severe summer storms roared through the Midwest lived in a house that was filled with cuckoo clocks that would go off every hour, on the hour, her family said.

— Selina Guevara, NBC news, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of storms

Noun

The two sides have escalated their air war on one another, with Ukraine increasingly firing barrages of drones at targets deep inside Russia, including warehouses and industrial plants as well as refineries.

— Tim Lister, CNN Money, 16 Aug. 2026
That standard still holds for his frequent barrages of boasts, insults, threats, grouses and indecipherable dispatches via Truth Social.

— Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of barrages

Verb

Alice slowly gets Marshall to lie on the floor, grabs the bottle of whiskey, and pours it into his mouth with glee.

— Erin Qualey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
As the company pours IPO cash into aggressive global expansion, analysts warn that shareholder pressure and past quality stumbles could test its eco-conscious image — and Wall Street patience.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of pours

Verb

Spotty showers across the Kansas City region Sunday morning give way to sunny skies and building heat, the forecast shows.

— Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 9 Aug. 2026
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

Definition of showers

Noun

That increase has already led to more sunny day flooding, intensified rainfalls and hurricanes, reflected in higher and higher insurance premiums.

— Denise Hruby, Miami Herald, 31 July 2026
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

Definition of rainfalls

Noun

Forecasters warned the worst may not yet be over for some Midwesterners, as rivers continued to swell Thursday in states previously struck by this week's floods.

— Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
The Japan Meteorological Agency issued its most severe warning for heavy rain in 14 municipalities in the Chiba prefecture, warning residents of floods and landslides.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 Aug. 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