noun
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precipitation in the form of raindrops
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meteorol the amount of precipitation in a specified place and time
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of rainfall
Vocabulary lists containing rainfall
The Water Cycle - Introductory
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Earth Science - Middle School
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The Water Cycle - Middle School and High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
This latest decline is down not just to hot weather, which has been slightly mitigated by recent rainfall, but also a reduction in cultivated areas -- pared back 1.9 percent in the past year.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
From August through October, meltwater and rainfall add mass to the oceans, pushing Earth's center of mass toward the South Pacific Ocean.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
The Environment Agency has previously said that 20% more rainfall than average is needed for at least seven months before all areas will be out of drought status.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
As a result, the complaint says, instead of snow in the winter, Boulder gets more “high-intensity, short-duration rainfall events” that overwhelm its drainage systems and cause flooding.
From Slate ● Oct. 5, 2026
In winter, when the flooding came, residents there would have to drive through the creek, which became impassable during heavy rainfall.
From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith
Extreme rainfalls during the ongoing monsoon season are a major source of floods in several parts of India.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2025
Most notably, in May 2017, some 6 million cubic yards of earth moved after torrential rainfalls, adding 15 acres of coastline.
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2024
But there is also a possibility that climate change could lead to stronger El Niño and La Niña modulations, Xie said — making the strongest El Niño events even stronger, and extreme rainfalls more extreme.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2023
Peeling bark from cinnamon tree branches is easiest after heavy rainfalls, which soften the bark, so harvests typically happen after monsoon seasons.
From Salon ● Dec. 11, 2023
The rainy season in Sierra Leone falls between May and October, with the heaviest rainfalls in July, August, and September.
From "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
