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downpour

downpour

24 2.7
A heavy and sudden fall of rain
  • noun
  • /ˈdaʊnˌpɔr/
translation icon : aguacero
  • The downpour caught us by surprise, leaving us drenched within seconds.
  • a heavy downpour
  • torrential downpour
  • violent downpours

It was a cataclysmic downpour and soaked to the bone was our Thanksgiving night.

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Examples

  • The lowering sky was dark and threatening, promising worse than the downpour already underway.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • It looks like after a week of downpours, we finally have a beautiful, sunny day ahead of us.

  • I was sure there would be a downpour.

  • That should increase the moisture inside here and bring on a downpour.

  • A servant ran out into the downpour to fetch something that had been left on a stone seat.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Today they'd been caught in a downpour just as they began their walk.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • At the fence, even in the downpour, Nola and Will began to talk.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • The legions were now blind and lost as a continuous heavy downpour began finally breaking through into open country.

  • There are occasional downpours; in fact, heavy rains damaged some parts of the site this January.

    Academic text (2002)
  • The continuous downpour soaked the ground and dampened spirits, leaving many in a very grumpy mood.

Synonyms

deluge
vsdownpour
11 6.3

A very heavy rain that causes flooding

is a heavy sudden fall but not necessarily causing flooding
torrent
vsdownpour
3 4.4

A very heavy fall of rain that starts suddenly

is the basic sudden heavy fall, not the broader outflow
cloudburst
vsdownpour
2 6.3

A sudden very heavy rain that falls for a short time

is the general sudden heavy fall without implying short time
spate
vsdownpour
1 7.9

A sudden large flow of water after heavy rain

is specific to a fall of rain rather than any water outflow
torrent of rain
vsdownpour
1 3.0

A sudden very heavy fall of rain that soaks everything

is a sudden heavy fall without stressing extreme intensity
soaker
vsdownpour
  • US
1 4.2

A short time of very heavy rain

is a sudden fall rather than an extended soaking period
heavy precipitation
vsdownpour
1 3.2

A lot of rain or snow that falls in a short time

is limited to heavy and sudden rain only
speight
vsdownpour
  • Archaic
9.9

A sudden heavy fall of rain that soaks quickly

is the modern neutral term rather than an archaic variant
pelter
vsdownpour
  • Archaic
9.9

A heavy sudden rain that soaks people quickly

is a sudden heavy fall without stressing violence or force
spate of rain
vsdownpour
6.3

Heavy rain that falls suddenly for a short time

is the sudden heavy fall itself, not only an outbreak
temporale
vsdownpour
9.9

A sudden strong storm with heavy rain and thunder

is heavy sudden rain without requiring thunder or full storm

How Heavy

deluge
11 6.3
downpour
24 2.7
rain
1.0
shower
162 1.0
drizzle
21 1.0

Surface Forms

downpour singular
downpours plural

Morphology

downpour = pour (semi-transparent) = down + pour

The components 'down' and 'pour' are clear, but the specific meaning of a heavy rain is not directly derivable from the individual meanings. [Postprocessing: moved 'down' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

Downpour is made from down ('downwards') and pour ('to let a lot of liquid fall'), so picture someone pouring water straight down from a bucket; that image helps you remember a downpour is a sudden, heavy fall of rain.