What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of ame (rain), the particle ga (the subject marker) and futte iru (the continuous form of the verb furu, meaning to fall or descend). Literally, it means "rain falls (is) doing".
Which one should you use?
While 雨が降っている describes the ongoing state of it raining right now, the simpler form 雨が降る is used to describe the general fact that it rains or to state that it will rain in the future.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
雨が降っています is the polite form and should be used in standard conversation with strangers or superiors. 雨が降っている is the plain or informal form used in casual conversation. A further simplified version used in informal speech is 雨が降ってる. In formal situations, to express that it will rain, you can use 雨が降るでしょう.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the Kansai region, people often say 雨降っとる instead of 雨が降っている.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form 雨が降る is used to express "it rains" or "it will rain", whereas 雨が降っている is used for the continuous state of raining.
How do you pronounce it?
ame ga futte iru
Did you know?
- While ame means 'rain', it is a homonym for the word for 'candy'. The meaning is distinguished by a difference in pitch accent, where 'rain' has a high-low pattern and 'candy' has a low-high pattern.
- The Kanji character for 'rain' 雨 is a pictograph that represents droplets falling from a cloud. It also appears as a radical in other characters related to weather, such as 'snow' 雪 and 'cloud' 雲.
- Because the verb 降る (furu) describes the act of falling, you can use it to describe everything from cherry blossom petals to snow.
Examples in context
- 雨が降っている。It is raining.This sentence is useful for stating that it is currently raining.Tatoeba #5212 by bunbuku, translation #1862 by CK
- まだ雨が降っている。It's still raining.This sentence is useful for stating that it is still raining.Tatoeba #195469 by small_snow, translation #32643 by CK
- また雨が降っている！It's raining again!This sentence is useful for stating that it is raining again.Tatoeba #2204525 by bunbuku, translation #507341 by CM
- 本日は雨です。Today, it is raining.
- 外は雨が降っているよ。It's raining outside.
- 今日は雨が降ってるね。It's raining today, huh?
- いいえ今日は雨降っとるわ。No, it's raining today.
- 18 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hiyori and Kenta are looking out the window.
- 陽葵 Himari見て、外は雨が降っているよ。Mite, soto wa ame ga futte iru yo.Look, it is raining outside.
- 健太 Kenta本当だ。傘を持っているかな。Hontou da. Kasa o motte iru kana.You're right. I wonder if I have my umbrella.
- 陽葵 Himariまだ雨が降っているから、出ないほうがいいよ。Mada ame ga futte iru kara, denai hou ga ii yo.It's still raining, so you should probably not go out.
- 健太 Kentaそうだね。しばらく待とう。Sou da ne. Shibaraku matou.True. Let's wait a while.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 雨が降っている, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
