The phrase “it’s raining cats and dogs” is an idiom that means it is raining very heavily. There are different theories about the origin of this expression, but none of them are certain. Here are some of the possible explanations:
- It may come from the Norse mythology, where cats were associated with the storm goddess Freyja and dogs were symbols of the wind god Odin. Therefore, “raining cats and dogs” may refer to a storm with wind and rain.
- It may come from the Greek expression cata doxa, which means “contrary to experience or belief”. If it is raining cats and dogs, it is raining unusually or unbelievably hard.
- It may come from the old French word catadupe, which meant a waterfall or a cataract. This word was derived from the Greek word kataraktes, which literally meant “down-rushing”.
- It may come from the 17th century, when the drainage systems in Europe were poor and sometimes flooded the streets with garbage and dead animals. During heavy rain, it may have looked like cats and dogs were falling from the sky.
