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Grammar fix

light rain

a little rain

Rain that is gentle and not heavy; only a small amount of rain falls.

collocationB1common

Hear it in context

Notice where the phrase sounds natural.

  • There was light rain this morning, so I just took an umbrella.weather
  • During my holiday, the weather was mostly sunny, but there was some light rain in the evenings, which made the air feel fresh.IELTS speaking

Fix the pattern

Pattern: light rain (uncountable noun)

WrongIt's a small rain.

RightIt's light rain. / It's only spitting.

Rain is 'light' (or 'heavy'), not 'small'.

Patternlight rain (uncountable noun)

Use it right

Choose the version that sounds natural in speech.

Stiff A minimal quantity of precipitation is falling.

Natural It's only light rain.

'Light rain' is standard; 'minimal quantity of precipitation' is a forecast.

Build natural chunks

Words that usually travel with it.

  • light rain
    lightdrizzleshowersa bit of

Don't confuse it

Compare with 'heavy rain,' which means a lot of rain falls quickly.

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