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:
The resulting rainfall patterns were different as well.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 15, 2026
That earlier episode brought substantial rainfall to California and other parts of the southern United States, raising the possibility of comparable conditions during the coming winter.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 15, 2026
Widespread rainfall is likely with hail and thunderstorms possible for parts of Wales and southern England.
From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2026
In the strong El Niño of 2015-2016, California actually had below-average rainfall.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2026
Somehow, I managed to kick away from the van and raised my face up into rainfall again, blurry eyed, knotted in painful cramps, and coughing so hard, I thought I’d puke.
From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith
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
The research team considered how these urban land changes might affect weather extremes like heat waves, cold waves, heavy rainfalls and severe thunderstorms.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 10, 2023
Other parts of the country witnessed heavy rainfalls and floods.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2023
It is our second month in Anlungthmor and we are amid one of the worst rainfalls ever.
From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung
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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.
