It's Raining Cats & Dogs: Where We Get The Expression
It's raining cats and dogs: an odd phrase indeed. Have you ever wondered where it originated? Though there is not a definitive origin, there are some possible derivations.
A literal explanation for raining cats and dogs is that during heavy rains in 17th-century England some city streets became raging rivers of filth carrying many dead cats and dogs (oh no, poor kitties and doggies).
The first printed use of the phrase dates to the 17th century, when English playwright Richard Brome wrote in The City Witt (1652): "It shall rain dogs and polecats."
Other conjectures are that the hyperbole comes from a Greek saying, similar in sound, meaning "an unlikely occurence," and that the phrase derives from a rare French word, catadoupe ("a waterfall"), which sounds a little like cats and dogs.
It could also be that the expression was inspired by the fact that cats and dogs were closely associated with the rain and wind in Northern mythology, dogs often being pictured as the attendants of Odin, the storm god, while cats were believed to cause storms.
Similar colloquial expressions include it's raining pitchforks, darning needles, hammer handles, and chicken coops.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 at 9:27AM
Reader Comments (3)
Gosh, it would amazing if it really rained cats and dogs!!! I would catch and snuggle with every one! great article, I loved it! xo
when i was in school i heard another version: in the same 17th century or so, at the time of rain cats and dogs would hide in the attic, scared, but since the houses were pretty old and flimzy, their roofs made of layers and layers of hay, the house animals would often simply fall through the construction being destroyed by the heavy rains.
but i think it was just a PG version of what you said, Jinxi) haha.
Anya, I like your version too, but both versions are kind of sad. Yes, I do have a soft side. :)
Another great post Jinxi!