“It’s Raining Cats and Dogs” Idiom Meaning, Origin & History | Superduper English Idioms
Channel: Superduper English Idioms
Date: 01/06/2020

0:00 - How to Say, “It's raining cats and dogs.”
0:16 - Meaning of “It's raining cats and dogs.”
1:36 - Origin of “It's raining cats and dogs.”
2:03 - A Surprising Fact About "It's raining cats and dogs."
2:27 - Examples of “It's raining cats and dogs” in other languages.
4:03 - Conclusion

“It’s Raining Cats and Dogs”

No doubt you’ve heard the English idiom, “It’s raining cats and dogs”, whenever it’s raining outside.

However, you’ll only hear the idiom when it’s raining heavily and not just if it’s a light rain.

This idiom sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? Do cats and dogs ever really fall from the sky? What about other types of animals?

In fact, there have been times when animals have fallen from the sky during heavy rains.

In Singapore in 1861, after three days of torrential rain, fish were found in puddles.

Throughout history, fish raining from the sky has happened many times and probably happens when they are lifted out of the water by tornadic waterspouts.

On the other hand, it is much more common for groups of bats or birds flying through the air to encounter storms and then fall from the sky.

Did it ever really rain cats and dogs?

According to Wikipedia, it is unclear where this idiom came from, but the leading theory is that during 17th-century Europe, drainage systems were inadequate and dead animals would often get caught in them. Then, when it rained heavily, these animals would be washed out and onto the streets.

You could imagine the surprise of residents when they saw dead cats and dogs in the streets after a heavy rain!

The idiom, “It’s raining cats and dogs,” is used in English, but other languages have equally amusing idioms to describe heavy rain.

In Bengali, they say, “Rain is falling like pestles.” Ouch! That would hurt.

In Cantonese, they say, “It’s raining dog poo.” Yuck! I wonder if rain stinks where they live?

In French, they say, “It’s raining like a peeing cow.” Ewe! Is that what butter’s made of?

On a side note, one of the heaviest types of rain are the monsoon rains found in Asia-Australia and West Africa.

The monsoon rains are an entire season in these regions - typically lasting several months.

The word “monsoon” was first used in English in British India and is perhaps derived from Portuguese, which was in turn derived from the Arabic word meaning “seasons”.

In Taiwan and other East Asian countries, the monsoon rains are known as “plum rain”.

In East Asia, it was historically believed that when the plums growing to the south of the Yangtze River turned yellow in the fourth and fifth lunar months, the moisture that evaporated from the plants turned into rain.

Now the next time you experience heavy rain, perhaps you’ll enjoy it rather than run from it!

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