Raining

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /ˈɹeɪnɪŋ/

Definitions

1. The process where moisture descends from clouds as droplets occurs in the atmosphere A climatic event marked by falling water from the sky in liquid form An environmental occurrence involving the manifestation of droplets from above
2. The meteorological occurrence when water descends from the sky as droplets is commonly seen in various climates
3. The atmospheric event when water droplets fall from clouds to the surface below

Etymology: The surprising part of "raining" is how little of its story is about the verb itself. The word is simply the present participle and gerund of "rain", and "rain" goes back a very long way in the Germanic languages. Its ancestor, Proto-Germanic "regną", is reconstructed for the wet stuff falling from the sky, and it survives almost unchanged across the family: Dutch "regen", German "Regen", Swedish and Danish "regn", and Gothic "rign", recorded in the Bible translation of the 4th century. The verb followed the noun. Old English "reġnian" came from a Proto-West Germanic verb "regnōn", built on the same root, so "to rain" and "rain" grew up together and have always meant the same thing. The "-ing" ending simply turns that verb into a participle and gerund, which is why "raining" can name both the ongoing act and the falling water itself. The ultimate origin of the root is uncertain. One proposal links it to a Proto-Indo-European verb meaning "to flow", but the consonants do not line up neatly, so it remains unproven.

Synonyms: precipitating, drizzling, showering, pouring, spitting

Antonyms: sunny, clear, dry, clear-sky, fair