rainy

rainy — adjective

1. describes a period of time — such as an afternoon, a day, or a whole season — wh

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

describes a period of time — such as an afternoon, a day, or a whole season — when rain falls often or heavily, sometimes continuing for hours.

Example

The rainy weather forced the children to stay inside and play board games.

collocation: rainy weather

Joon always carries an umbrella during the rainy season in Seoul.

collocation: rainy season

Common collocations
  • rainy season
  • rainy day
  • rainy weather
  • rainy climate
  • rainy afternoon
Synonyms
  • wet

    more general; can mean damp, soaked, or covered in water, not necessarily from rain

  • drizzly

    describes light, fine rain rather than heavy or long-lasting rain

  • showery

    describes weather with short periods of rain that come and go, not steady rainfall

Antonyms
  • dry

    having little or no rain; the direct opposite in weather contexts

  • sunny

    bright with sunshine; the typical contrast used in forecasts

Grammar Patterns

rainy + noun (day / season / weather / afternoon)

Usage Note

This adjective is most often placed before a noun (e.g. 'a rainy afternoon'). It describes the general character of a day or season, not the act of rain falling at a specific moment — for that, use 'raining' (e.g. 'It is raining right now').

Common Mistakes

It's rainy now — take an umbrella.
It's raining now
take an umbrella.' — 'rainy' describes the nature of a period (a rainy week), not the immediate action of rain falling.
We had a raining season this year.
We had a rainy season this year.
'raining' is a verb form; use 'rainy' as the adjective before the noun.
Idioms

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All three words describe weather with moisture, but 'rainy' is the most direct and common term for periods when rain falls heavily or often. 'Wet' is broader — a 'wet day' may mean rainy, but a 'wet road' is simply covered in water. 'Drizzly' refers specifically to very light, fine rain that falls gently, while 'showery' describes weather where rain comes in short bursts with breaks in between. In a weather forecast, 'rainy' suggests persistent or heavy rain ('a rainy weekend'), whereas 'showery' suggests intermittent rain ('scattered showers'), and 'drizzly' suggests a grey, misty day with barely noticeable drizzle.

wet ↗drizzlyshowery

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • rainy season
  • rainy day
  • rainy weather
  • rainy climate

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

The word 'rainy' comes from Old English 'rēniġ', which combined 'regn' (rain) with the suffix '-iġ' (modern '-y'), meaning 'full of rain'. It has been used to describe wet weather since before the 12th century. A related form exists in German 'regnerisch'.