shower
1 Americannoun
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a brief fall of rain or, sometimes, of hail or snow.
An afternoon shower is forecast for tomorrow.
This weekend they’re predicting freezing weather with scattered snow showers.
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Also called shower bath.
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a bath in which water is sprayed on the body, usually from an overhead perforated nozzle showerhead.
I took a quick shower before dinner.
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the apparatus for this or the room or stall enclosing it.
The shower is leaking.
We have two bathrooms, but the downstairs one has only a shower and no tub.
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an abundant supply or quantity.
I wish you and your family a shower of wealth, joy, health, and other blessings!
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a party at which gifts of a specific kind are given, as for a bride, prospective parent, someone moving house, or any other purpose.
Excited by the prospect of a new campus infirmary, students and alumni held a linen shower to provide new sheets and towels.
When he moved into his own apartment, we held a housewarming shower for him, giving him more kitchenware than one person could ever use.
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a fall of many objects, such as tears, sparks, things that are thrown, etc..
The couple walked out of the church under a shower of confetti.
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Astronomy. air shower.
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showers, a room or area equipped with several overhead perforated nozzles, sometimes in separate stalls, for use by a number of people bathing at the same time.
verb (used with object)
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showers,
present (3rd person singular)
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showered,
past participle, past
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showering
present participle
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to bestow liberally or lavishly.
We showered good wishes and last-minute bits of advice on the departing hockey team.
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to deluge (a person) with gifts, favors, etc..
She was showered with gifts on her birthday.
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to bathe (oneself) with water sprayed on the body, usually from an overhead perforated nozzle.
In the past 30 days the patient has been able to exercise, shower himself, toilet himself, and play a board game.
verb (used without object)
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showers,
present (3rd person singular)
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showered,
past participle, past
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showering
present participle
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to bathe with water sprayed on the body, usually from an overhead perforated nozzle.
Do you prefer to shower in the morning or at bedtime?
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to rain briefly.
During the final game on Saturday it showered for a couple of minutes, and then the sun came out again.
idioms
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hit the showers,
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to go and take a shower (originally of a group bathing in a space with multiple overhead nozzles, as in a gym, school, locker room, etc.).
The coach made us run one more lap before we hit the showers.
After eight hours helping them move, I'm ready to hit the showers and go to bed.
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Baseball. (of a pitcher) to be replaced in a game, usually because of ineffectiveness.
He was throwing inconsistently and found himself hitting the showers before the fifth inning four times in two months.
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to stop giving one’s full effort, as if the game or task were over.
You don't hit the showers if you're up three touchdowns in the first quarter—you finish the game with the same intensity you started with.
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send to the showers,
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to replace (a pitcher) during a game, usually because they are ineffective.
The coach sent him to the showers after he walked three batters in a row.
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to cause (a pitcher) to be replaced in a game, as by getting many hits off them; knock out of the box.
Two home runs and a line-drive double sent her to the showers.
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noun
noun
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a brief period of rain, hail, sleet, or snow
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a sudden abundant fall or downpour, as of tears, sparks, or light
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a rush; outpouring
a shower of praise
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a kind of bath in which a person stands upright and is sprayed with water from a nozzle
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Full name: shower bath. the room, booth, etc, containing such a bath
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slang a derogatory term applied to a person or group, esp to a group considered as being slack, untidy, etc
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a party held to honour and present gifts to a person, as to a prospective bride
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a large number of particles formed by the collision of a cosmic-ray particle with a particle in the atmosphere
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a light fabric cover thrown over a tea table to protect the food from flies, dust, etc
verb
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(tr) to sprinkle or spray with or as if with a shower
shower the powder into the milk
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to fall or cause to fall in the form of a shower
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(tr) to give (gifts, etc) in abundance or present (a person) with (gifts, etc)
they showered gifts on him
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(intr) to take a shower
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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showerlessadjective
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showerlikeadjective
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showeryadjective
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unshoweredadjective
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well-showeredadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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showersimple
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showerssimple
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have showeredperfect
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has showeredperfect
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am showeringprogressive
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are showeringprogressive
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is showeringprogressive
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have been showeringperfect progressive
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has been showeringperfect progressive
Past
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showeredsimple
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had showeredperfect
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was showeringprogressive
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were showeringprogressive
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had been showeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of shower1
First recorded before 950; Middle English noun shouer, shour, shour(r)e Old English scūr, scūra; cognate with German Schauer, Old Norse skūr, Gothic skūra; verb derivative of the noun
Origin of shower2
First recorded before 900; Middle English sheuer(e), shoure “watchman, overseer, teacher, guide” Old English scēawere, derivative of scēawian to show; see -er 1
Vocabulary lists containing shower
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:
Give me something I can put in a 350-degree oven for a few minutes while I shower and become a person, and I am delighted.
From Salon ● Sep. 22, 2026
The well-appointed accommodations included double-occupancy cabins; two long, windowed promenades; a dining room, bar and smoking lounge; a dedicated writing room; toilets and a shower.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
A prolific artist, Max created marketable work that was licensed for many consumer products, from shower curtains to planes and cruise ships, and even a line of "art clocks" commissioned by General Electric.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
It will be followed by the impressive Orionid meteor shower in late October, and a planetary parade, the Leonid meteor shower and a supermoon in November.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
I’ve whispered the words to myself in the shower.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
There are also cots and showers for technicians who might hunker down during extreme weather to keep the servers running.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
Sunny spells will develop elsewhere with some showers, especially across Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
Most teams don ski goggles to celebrate with champagne and beer showers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Among the recommendations made in the report was putting an end to the use of the small metal enclosures, greater access to showers for inmates and more recreation time.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
The everyday world had surprises, too, like hot showers in the dorm.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
Aside from being showered with gravel churned up by the "gobby" miscreants, no one came to harm that day, but others have not been so lucky.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
For three months, the two rappers slept, showered and worked there.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
At a private dinner hosted by Erdogan at his compound on Tuesday, Trump was showered with praise by world leaders, according to a U.S. official familiar with the gathering.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
He’s sold out venues across the country, including Madison Square Garden, appeared on the biggest comedy podcasts and was showered with Saudi Arabian gold for performing in Riyadh.
From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026
He smelled the faint scent of Gibby’s strawberry shampoo, mixed with a tinge of body odor from Ridge—he hadn’t showered, after all—and the unplaceable odor that was, no doubt, Beejee.
From "The First State of Being" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Her other best practices include showering in lukewarm water for no longer than 10 minutes and always moisturizing afterward.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Its open crumb absorbs just enough sauce to become more flavorful as it sits, while the soft crust remains easy to eat on a towel without showering your lap in shards.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026
Use extractor fans when cooking or showering because they remove warm, moist air before it spreads through the home.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
"We use as little as possible," she said, standing at the locker room of a local sports field, which was turned into a temporary showering facility.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Three weeks later, when orange, yellow, and purple leaves were showering down from the trees, Frightful was fat.
From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
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.
