light rain — a little rain
collocationB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
Rain that is gentle and not heavy; only a small amount of rain falls.
Say it like a native
Textbook A minimal quantity of precipitation is falling.
Native It's only light rain.
'Light rain' is standard; 'minimal quantity of precipitation' is a forecast.
Pattern: light rain (uncountable noun)
In use
- 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
Common mistake
✗ It's a small rain.
✓ It's light rain. / It's only spitting.
Rain is 'light' (or 'heavy'), not 'small'.
Common collocations
light rain— light, drizzle, showers, a bit of
Don't confuse it
Compare with 'heavy rain,' which means a lot of rain falls quickly.