So many times after giving a forecast of, "we can't rule out a shower," or "a few scattered showers expected today," someone will ask me, "should I cancel my plans because it is going to rain?"

Aside from water falling from the clouds, there is a big difference between a forecast of showers and rain. 

What You Need To Know

  • The difference between rain and showers has to do with time and place

  • Showers are hit-or-miss and shorter

  • Rain lasts longer for a larger geographic area

Let's start with the definition of a shower regarding the weather. The dictionary defines it as a fall of rain, sleet, hail or snow (and everything in-between) of short duration. "Of short duration" is the difference between showers and rain.

Rain is water falling in drops condensed from vapor in the atmosphere. Notice the lack of "short duration."

A shower is typically hit-or-miss. It can be light, heavy, isolated, spotty, scattered or numerous, but short-lived. Rain can also be light to heavy, but lasts for hours or even days. Rain will also typically cover a much larger geographic area.  

So when you hear us say "showers" on our forecast, don't change those outdoor plans just yet as it will not rain. What I try to convey in my forecast is, "a shower may interrupt your outdoor plans, but there won't be any rain that washes them out."  

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