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Definition: rain from Philip's Encyclopedia

Water drops that fall from the Earth's atmosphere to its surface. Rain is one form of precipitation. Rain occurs when air carrying water vapour cools, which causes condensation of the vapour into drops. This most commonly happens when the air rises for one of three reasons: it passes over higher ground (relief rainfall), it is heated by warm ground (convectional rainfall), it meets colder air at a front (frontal rainfall). See also hydrological cycle

rain

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
precipitation in liquid form. It consists of drops of water falling from clouds; if the drops are very small, they are collectively termed drizzle. Rain plays a key role in the hydrologic, or water, cycle in which moisture from the oceans evaporates, condenses into clouds, precipitates back to earth, and eventually returns to the ocean via runoff into streams and rivers to begin the cycle again. Clouds contain huge numbers of tiny droplets of moisture. Raindrops are formed when these tiny droplets are enlarged, first by moisture from the surrounding air condensing on them and then by coalescing with other droplets during their descent. Raindrops vary in size from about 0.02 in. (0.5 mm) to as much as 0.33 in. (8 mm) in thunderstorms. From the time they leave the bottom of the cloud, evaporation takes place and, if the cloud is high, the air warm and dry, and the raindrops small, so that they fall slowly, they may evaporate completely before they reach the earth. If they do so, the…
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Full text Article Rain

From A Dictionary of Literary Symbols
Of the many symbolic aspects of rain we shall describe two, both obvious developments of rain’s real effects: rain as suffering or bad luck and rain as fertilizing force from above. Rain often stands as a synecdoche for all bad weather and thus a symbol of life’s unhappy moments. We save for a…
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Full text Article Rain and Hail

From Guide to Global Hazards
Shallow clouds and those in the tropics do not...
Heavy rains from thunderstorms are particularly hazardous in the south‐western United States. Central Texas holds many records for the amounts of rain that is dumped within a 24-hour period. In 1935 the community of D'Hanis, located 60 km (40 miles) west of San Antonio, south‐west Texas, received 56…
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Full text Article rain

From Collins Spanish Dictionary
[N] 1 Metal lluvia f • in the rain bajo la lluvia • a walk in the rain un paseo bajo la lluvia • he left his bike out in the rain dejó la bicicleta bajo la lluvia • don’t go out in the rain no salgas, que está lloviendo • if the rain keeps off si no llueve • it looks like rain parece que va a llover…
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Full text Article rain

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
precipitation in liquid form. It consists of drops of water falling from clouds; if the drops are very small, they are collectively termed drizzle. Rain plays a key role in the hydrologic, or water, cycle in which moisture from the oceans evaporates, condenses into clouds, precipitates back to…
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Full text Article rain

From The Macquarie Dictionary
water in drops falling from the sky to the earth, being condensed from the aqueous vapour in the atmosphere. Plural: rains a rainfall, rainstorm, or shower. Plural: rains noun plural /re1n/ /rayn/ the seasonal rainfalls, or the rainy or wet season, in some regions, as India. Plural: rains a large…
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Full text Article rain

From Collins English Dictionary
n 1 a precipitation from clouds in the form of drops of water, formed by the condensation of water vapour in the atmosphere b a fall of rain; shower c ( in combination ): a raindrop . Related adjectives: hyetal , pluvious 2 a large quantity of anything falling rapidly or in quick succession: a rain…
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Full text Article rain

From The American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language
a. Water condensed from atmospheric vapor and falling in drops. b. A fall of such water; a rainstorm. c. The descent of such water. d. Rainy weather. e. rains A rainy season. A heavy or abundant fall: a rain of fluffy cottonwood seeds; a rain of insult... …
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Full text Article Rain

From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
To rain very heavily. In northern mythology the cat is supposed to have great influence on the weather, and ‘The cat has a gale of wind in her tail’ is a seafarers’ expression for when a cat is unusually frisky. Witches that rode on storms were said to assume the form of cats. The dog is a signal of…
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Full text Article rain

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Form of precipitation in which separate drops of water fall to the Earth's surface from clouds. The drops are formed by the accumulation of fine droplets that condense from water vapour in the air. The condensation is usually brought about by rising and subsequent cooling of air. Rain can form in…
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Full text Article acid rain

From The Macquarie Dictionary
highly acidic rain, caused by pollution in the atmosphere. Plural: acid rains Acid rain is formed when airborne pollutants from the burning of fossil fuels, and from industrial activities and vehicles emissions, as well as from natural events such as bushfires, undergo reactions with water vapour…
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