一分鐘學英語 ⑥ raining cats and dogs

為了讓同學們學習地道的英語表達，準確地理解英語俚語（slang)、習慣用語（idiom) 和諺語（proverb)，以及其包含的英語文化和背景知識。特別推出 English in one minute 系列材料，供大家自主選擇學習。

* idiom: a group of words that has a special meaning that is different from the ordinary meaning of each separate word.  

【中文】：成語、方言、習慣用語

For example, 

「under the weather"  is an idiom meaning 「ill 」.

We wanted to have a barbecue this weekend, but it's been raining cats and dogs     A. There were lots of cats and dogs in the rain.             B. It was raining heavily all the weekend.

Welcome to English in a Minute,

where we teach you all about idioms in American English.

If I told you it was "raining cats and dogs" today, I don't think you would see this little kitten falling from the sky.
But what would you see? Let's watch and find out.

—It's been raining all day today! The rain is coming down so hard!
—I know. It's raining cats and dogs today!

This is a very common expression in American English.
When you say that it's "raining cats and dogs" in a conversation,

it's another way to say it's "raining very hard" or it's "raining a lot".You can use this expression anytime and everybody will understand you!So until next time, stay dry!And that's English in a Minute.* kitten: (noun.) a young catOur cats had a litter of six kittens.對於各類動物的幼崽，英語有一些對應的名詞，如puppy對應dog, cub 對應lion等。* It's been raining : 這個句子是現在完成進行時，It has been raining...* common: (adj.) not unusual or specialShakespeare's work was popular among the common people in his day.莎士比亞的作品，在他那個年代，很受普羅大眾的歡迎。