downpour
Americannoun
-
downpours
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of downpour
Explanation
A downpour is a rainstorm, especially a very heavy one. If you get caught unexpectedly in a downpour, you'll wish you brought an umbrella. A downpour is exactly what it sounds like: torrential, pouring rain. A downpour, even one that's brief, can cause flooding in streets and basements. In some parts of the world, there are whole seasons that regularly bring downpours, while other places experience droughts so severe that people wish for a downpour. The word has been in use since the mid-19th century.
Vocabulary lists containing downpour
Water Hazard: Words for Too Much Moisture
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Raining Cats and Dogs
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Because of Winn-Dixie
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Thunder and lightning accompanied a torrential downpour, followed by the obligatory pictures of rain pouring into the stadium through a leak in the roof.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
Christina Siceloff, 41 years old, can still smell a faint chemical odor after a downpour, she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
What makes things even more difficult is that it’s impossible, as of now, to pinpoint the exact time and location of a downpour, even though it can be gauged with marvelous accuracy.
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
He’s made it inside just in time to escape the rain, droplets from the downpour still visible on his white T-shirt.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
I’d wake every time we hit a heavy downpour.
From "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" by Benjamin Alire Saenz
Droughts, intensive downpours and diseases have created challenges for tea growers across the world as they deal with the impact of a warming planet.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
That matters not only for repeated downpours but for melting snow.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
With global warming, not only will precipitation increasingly fall as rain and not snow, but atmospheric rivers are also predicted to grow more potent, bringing more intense downpours.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026
Emergency services in Catalonia said they received more than 850 calls related to the downpours and catalogued over 500 incidents.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
The rainy season had started, and though it was only drizzling now, in the days ahead, we’d face many downpours.
From "The Bridge Home" by Padma Venkatraman
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
