Fog, drizzle and sudden sunlight, in words the shipping forecast forgot.
A heavy, sudden, and localized downpour of rain.
It captures the sudden, unceremonious thud of rain meeting dry pavement.
“Just as I stepped out, a sudden plump drenched my clothes entirely.”
An onomatopoeic formation from the 16th century, imitating the sound of a heavy body hitting water.
A fine, thick, smoky drizzle often found in the Scottish and Northern regions.
A lovely, atmospheric word for the kind of rain that feels like being breathed upon by a ghost.
“The distant hills vanished behind a grey smurr that settled over the glen.”
A regional term of obscure origin, likely related to Middle Dutch smore, meaning smoke or haze.
A driving, gusty shower of rain that moves rapidly with the wind.
Essential for when the clouds have clearly decided to abandon all composure.
“A dark scud swept across the bay, lashing the windows for a fleeting moment.”
Recorded in the 17th century, possibly a variant of scud meaning to move swiftly or run.
A fine, misty, or drizzling rain that hangs persistently in the air.
A perfectly blunt little word for the sort of weather that refuses to show any ambition.
“The valley was completely obscured by a thick, persistent dag that soaked us to the bone.”
Derived from the Middle English dagge, potentially of Scandinavian root, relating to damp or moisture.
A light, swift shower of rain often accompanied by wind.
It sounds exactly like the nervous patter of tiny feet on a tin roof.
“We had a brief skitter of rain while walking the moors, but the sun was back before we reached the inn.”
Recorded in Wright's English Dialect Dictionary, it likely shares roots with the verb skitter, implying a quick, darting motion.
A rare term for a heavy, persistent downfall of rain.
A dignified, Latinate way to describe being thoroughly soaked to the bone.
“The gardener retreated to his shed as the afternoon pluvine turned the lawn into a quagmire.”
Derived from the Latin pluvia, this rare coinage appeared in 17th-century texts to describe substantial wet weather.
Sources·Oxford English Dictionary
A sharp, biting blast of rain driven by a strong wind.
A word that bites as sharply as the weather it describes.
“He pulled his coat collar up against the cold skirl hitting the harbor front.”
Common in Northern English and Scots dialects, often associated with the shrill sound of wind or piping.
An archaic word denoting a stream or a flow, used specifically to describe heavy rain runoff.
A monosyllabic relic that captures the very essence of wet movement.
“The ren from the gutters carved deep channels into the gravel path.”
Rooted in the Old English rennan, found in the Middle English Dictionary to describe the act of running or flowing liquid.
An early variant form of drizzle, implying a fine, misty, and persistent fall of rain.
It adds a slightly sharper, more insistent prickle to the otherwise mundane mist.
“The persistent drizzle dampened our spirits during the long trek to the summit.”
First appearing in the 16th century, recorded in the OED as a variant of the more common drizzle.
A thin mist or drizzle; fog with rain already in it.
Rain that has not yet committed.
“The morning roke hung in the hedges until noon.”
Old English rēocan, 'to smoke' — the same root as reek.
A sudden opening in the cloud through which the sun pours.
The sky changing its mind.
“There was a sunbreak over the fells and everything went gold.”
19th century, chiefly North American; from sun + break.
A cold sea fog that rolls in off the water and swallows everything.
The sea arriving uninvited, wearing grey.
“A harr came up the estuary and ate the harbour whole.”
Northern dialect, from Old Norse hárr, 'grey with age'; recorded by Joseph Wright in the English Dialect Dictionary (1898).