01
der Regen
rain
Water that falls from the clouds to the earth in drops. It is the most common form of precipitation.
example
Wegen des starken Regens sind wir zu Hause geblieben.
Because of the heavy rain, we stayed at home.
der Regen
rain
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Word family
'Der Regen' (the rain) is the noun that belongs to the verb 'regnen' (to rain). If you know the sentence 'Es regnet' (It's raining), you can remember the noun easily.
EXAMPLE
Ich hoffe, es hört bald auf zu regnen.
I hope it stops raining soon.
Describing rain
The type of rain is often described with adjectives. Typical combinations are 'starker Regen' (heavy rain), 'leichter Regen' (light rain), and 'anhaltender Regen' (persistent rain).
EXAMPLE
Wir machten trotz des leichten Regens einen Spaziergang.
We went for a walk despite the light rain.
Fixed expression
The idiom 'jemanden im Regen stehen lassen' means not to help someone in a difficult situation.
EXAMPLE
Als ich umziehen musste, hat mein bester Freund mich im Regen stehen lassen.
When I had to move, my best friend left me standing in the rain.
Sentence structure of the metaphor
You can recognize the metaphorical meaning from the fixed structure 'ein Regen von + noun' (a shower of + noun). This signals that a large amount of something is meant, not the weather.
EXAMPLE
Nach seiner Rede gab es einen Regen von Applaus.
After his speech, there was a shower of applause.
Compare with
Regen vs Niederschlag
precipitation / precipitate / suppression
'der Regen' and 'der Niederschlag' both have to do with water that falls from the atmosphere to the earth. 'Regen' means only liquid drops. 'Niederschlag' is more general and can also mean snow or hail. In everyday language, people usually say 'Regen' when it is simply raining. 'Niederschlag' sounds more like a weather forecast, measurement, or technical language. Learners may confuse the words because rain is a form of precipitation. As a practical rule: all rain is precipitation, but not all precipitation is rain.
Regen
Der Regen ist heute stärker als gestern, deshalb bleiben die Kinder drinnen.
The rain is heavier today than yesterday, so the children are staying inside.
Niederschlag
Im Wetterbericht heißt es, dass morgen viel Niederschlag fällt.
The weather forecast says that there will be a lot of precipitation tomorrow.
In real life
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