What Is The Past Tense For Rain?
The past tense of “rain” is “rained.”
For example: Yesterday it rained heavily.
It indicates that the action of raining has already happened in the past.
In English, regular verbs typically form their past tense by adding “-ed” to the base form of the verb. “Rain” is a regular verb, so it follows this rule and adds “-ed” to form the past tense “rained.”
The past participle of rain is also rained. You can check out the table below for more verb forms of rain.
| Base/Infinitive Form (V1) | rain |
| Present Form/3rd Person/Singular Form | rains |
| Past Form (V2) | rained |
| Past Participle Form (V3) | rained |
| Present Participle/Gerund | raining |
How To Pronounce “Rain” Correctly?
Both American and British accents pronounce rain as /reɪn/, and rained as /reɪnd/. You can take a look at this table for more details.
| Verb Forms | Pronunciation | |
| British English language | American English language | |
| rain | /reɪn/ | /reɪn/ |
| rained (V2) | /reɪnd/ | /reɪnd/ |
| rained (V3) | /reɪnd/ | /reɪnd/ |
| raining | /reɪnɪŋ/ | /reɪnɪŋ/ |
How to pronounce “rain” and “rained”? You can practice with the videos below:
How to say rain:
How to say rained:
What Are The Definitions Of Rain? How To Use Rained?
We use “rained” as the past tense of the verb “rain” when referring to something that has already happened. It also has the same meaning as the V1 form of rain. Below are the definitions of the verb rain and its examples:
- To fall from the sky as water droplets (water falling from the clouds in the sky.)
It rained heavily last night.
Yesterday it rained all day, so I stayed inside and read a book.
- To fall or shower heavily and continuously, with large quantities
The rocks rained down on the hikers after the avalanche.
All students rained their notebooks from the second floor after the final exam had finished.
Exercises
FAQs
What Are The Synonyms And Antonyms Of Rain?
Common synonyms of the verb rain are: Precipitate, shower, drizzle, pour, torrential, patter, sheet, mist, sprinkle, drop, and pelting.
Common antonyms of the verb rain are: Dry up, evaporate, clear, disappear, cease, stop, halt, desiccate, dehydrate, and scorch. (See past tense of stop here)
Is Rain A Noun?
Yes, “rain” is also an uncountable noun, and can be used as a plural noun when it refers to a heavy rain season. Here are the different meanings of the noun “rain” along with its examples:
- Precipitation in the form of water droplets that fall from clouds in the sky
Example: We canceled the outdoor concert because of the heavy rain.
- A large number or quantity of something that is falling:
Example: We had a rain of compliments after our performance.
- The season of heavy rain in tropical nations
Example: The rains started early in our country this year.
What Are Some Idioms And Phrasal Verbs Of Rain?
Idioms:
- Rain cats and dogs: It’s pouring rain.
Example: I can’t go out now as it’s raining cats and dogs outside. (See past tense of go here)
- Come rain or shine: No matter what happens, whether it rains or not.
Example: I’ll be there for the party, come rain or shine.
Phrasal Verbs:
- Rain down: To fall heavily and continuously, as in raindrops.
Example: The snow was raining down heavily all day yesterday. I couldn’t do anything except for having 1-on-1 lessons with my teacher.
- Rain out: To cancel or postpone an outdoor event due to rain.
Example: The baseball game was rained out last night and will be rescheduled. Everyone was very disappointed about it.
- Rain off: To cancel or postpone an outdoor event due to rain.
Example: The outdoor concert rained off, and the musicians had to leave the stage.
- Rain on: To spoil a situation or dampen someone’s enthusiasm.
Example: Don’t rain on my parade. I’m really excited about this opportunity.
Is “Rain” a Transitive Or Intransitive Verb?
Rain can be both a transitive and intransitive verb when it means to fall/ to make something fall on somebody/something in huge quantities. However, if it means water falling in drops, “rain” is an intransitive verb.
His name is Benjamin Essek – The founder of Grammar Wiki. He is an English native speaker and has joined many English classes, learning communities to support other people with this common language as well.