% &

Everyday Mysteries
Fun Science Facts from the Library of Congress

« Library of Congress $ Share

Choose a Category #

« Back to Everyday Mysteries page

Question

What is the origin of

the phrase "it's raining
cats and dogs?"
Answer
We don’t know. The phrase might have its
roots in Norse mythology, medieval
superstitions, the obsolete word catadupe
(waterfall), or dead animals in the streets of
Britain being picked up by storm waters.

Very unpleasant weather. George Cruikshank, 1820. Ailsa Mellon

Bruce Fund, National Gallery of Art

The first recorded use of a phrase similar to “raining cats

and dogs” was in the 1651 collection of poems Olor Iscanus.
British poet Henry Vaughan referred to a roof that was
secure against “dogs and cats rained in shower.” One year
later, Richard Brome, an English playwright, wrote in his
comedy City Witt, “It shall rain dogs and polecats.” (Polecats
are related to the weasel and were common in Great
Britain through the end of the nineteenth century.)

Portrait of Jonathan Swift. Prints & Photographs Division, Library

of Congress.

In 1738, Jonathan Swift published his “Complete Collection

of Genteel and Ingenious Conversation,” a satire on the
conversations of the upper classes. One of his characters
fears that it will “rain cats and dogs.” Whether Swift coined
the phrase or was using a cliché, his satire was likely the
beginning of the phrase’s popularity. Other British writers
have employed less popular phrases, such as “it’s raining
pitchforks” or “it’s raining stair-rods,” to describe the shaft-
like appearance of heavy rains. But Swift’s phrase may
have been memorable enough to stick in the mind of the
public.

Puppies under an umbrella. 1914. Prints & Photographs Division,

Library of Congress

Swift also wrote a poem, “City Shower” (1710), that

described floods that occurred after heavy rains. The
floods left dead animals in the streets, and may have led
locals to describe the weather as “raining cats and dogs.”

Honorable Mr. Cat. Helen Hyde, 1903. Prints & Photographs

Division, Library of Congress

Why “cats and dogs”?

Again, we don’t know for certain. Etymologists—people
who study the origins of words—have suggested a variety
of mythological and literal explanations for why people say
“it’s raining cats and dogs” to describe a heavy downpour.
Here are some of the popular theories:

Odin, the Norse god of storms, was often pictured

with dogs and wolves, which were symbols of wind.
Witches, who supposedly rode their brooms during
storms, were often pictured with black cats, which
became signs of heavy rain for sailors. Therefore,
“raining cats and dogs” may refer to a storm with
wind (dogs) and heavy rain (cats).
“Cats and dogs” may come from the Greek
expression cata doxa, which means “contrary to
experience or belief.” If it is raining cats and dogs, it
is raining unusually or unbelievably hard.
“Cats and dogs” may be a perversion of the now
obsolete word catadupe. In old English, catadupe
meant a cataract or waterfall. A version of catadupe
existed in many old languages.In Latin, for example,
catadupa was borrowed from the classical Greek
κατάδουποι, which referred to the cataracts of the
Nile River. So, to say it’s raining “cats and dogs” might
be to say it’s raining waterfalls.
A false theory stated that cats and dogs used to
cuddle into thatch roofs during storms and then be
washed out during heavy rains. However, a properly
maintained thatch roof is naturally water resistant
and slanted to allow water to run off. In order to slip
off the roof, the animals would have to be lying on
the outside—an unlikely place for an animal to seek
shelter during a storm.

Dog: You certainly have an advantage. Goat: Why so? Dog: Why,
the summer showers don’t take the curl out of your horns. E.
Warde Blaisdell, c. 1903. Prints & Photographs Division, Library of
Congress.

Published: 11/19/2019. Author: Science Reference Section,

Library of Congress

Related Websites
Online Etymology Dictionary ! - A free online
dictionary of word origins.
World Wide Words ! - The English language is
forever changing: World Wide Words tries to record
at least a part of this shifting wordscape by featuring
new words, word histories, words in the news, and
the curiosities of native English speech.

Further Reading
Ammer, Christine. Cool cats, top dogs, and other
beastly expressions. Boston, Houghton Mifflin, c1999.
266 p. Brewer’s dictionary of phrase and fable. 17th
ed. Rev. by John Ayto. New York, Collins, 2005. 1523
p.
Franza, Jackie. It’s raining cats and dogs: making sense
of animal phrases. Illustrated by Steve Gray. Irvine,
CA, BowTie Press, c2005. 64 p. (Juvenile)
Vaughan, Henry. Olor Iscanus. A collection of some
select poems. London, Printed by T. W. for Humphrey
Moseley, and are to be sold at his shop, at the Signe
of the Prince’s Arms in St. Pauls Church-yard, 1651.
158 p.
Hendrickson, Robert. The Henry Holt encyclopedia of
word and phrase origins. 1st Owl Book ed. New York,
Holt, 1990. 581 p.
Klingel, Cynthia Fitterer. It’s as clear as a bell! (and
other curious things we say). Illustrated by Mernie
Gallagher-Cole. Mankato, MN, The Child’s World,
c2010. 24 p. (Juvenile)
Morris, William, and Mary Morris. Morris dictionary of
word and phrase origins. 2nd ed. Foreword by Isaac
Asimov. New York, Harper & Row, c1988. 669 p.
Moses, Will. Raining cats and dogs. New York,
Philomel Books, 2008. 37 p. (Juvenile)
Oxford dictionary of idioms. 2nd ed. Edited by Judith
Siefring. New York, Oxford University Press, 2005.
340 p.
Radford, Edwin. To coin a phrase. Arrow ed. Edited
and revised by Alan Smith. London, Arrow Books,
1974. 286 p.
Rees, Nigel. Cassell’s dictionary of word and phrase
origins. New ed. London, New York, Distributed in the
U.S. by Sterling Pub. Co, 2002. 274 p
Swift, Jonathan. "Complete Collection of Genteel and
Ingenious Conversation." A tale of a tub, and other
satires. London, J.M. Dent & Sons, Ltd.; New York, E.
P. Dutton & Co. Inc., 1932.

Search Terms
Language and languages--Etymology.
English language--Terms and phrases.

Have a question? Ask a science librarian

Follow Us
"
Take our survey !

Accessibility Legal Inspector General

External Link Disclaimer USA.gov Careers Contact Media

Donate Shop

' Back to top