What Does It Mean to Dream of Rain?

Rain can be greatly desired or a major inconvenience, depending on the circumstances. One thing it can’t be is controlled.

Your dream of rain can therefore show how you respond to the ups and downs that life brings you.

Rain Dream Symbolism

Cleansing

One big use for water is cleansing things that have gotten dirty, and rain sometimes fills this role. For example, if there is a lot of smoke or pollen in the air, rain can cut through it, making it easier for people to breathe.

Dreaming of rain could therefore symbolize clearing the air after some period of difficulty. This interpretation would especially be likely if your rain dream featured a rainbow or otherwise had a positive emotional atmosphere.

Nourishment

Rain provides plants with the water they need to live. Humans who rely on the growth of these plants for their own food may therefore regard rain as a very positive thing.

In this sense, dreaming of rain can symbolize that you are or soon will be nourished in some way that is important for you. This would be especially likely if your rain dream had a positive emotional atmosphere.

Abundance

As rain brings an abundant harvest in agriculture, the saying “make it rain” refers to financial abundance. Especially if your rain dream generally feels good, it could symbolize that you will be able to get the money or other resources that you need.

Inconvenience

The saying “rain on your parade” refers to the sort of inconvenience or disappointment that rain can bring to outdoor activities like parades, picnics, or sports games. These things are, of course, more enjoyable in sunny weather.

Dreaming of rain could therefore symbolize that your plans seem to be frustrated by annoying logistical issues that are not necessarily anyone’s fault.

Control

Whether you want rain to nourish your crops, or you want sun to shine on your picnic, you cannot control if rain comes. Dreaming of rain can therefore symbolize a situation where you are dependent on forces beyond your control to get an outcome that you want.

Melancholy

People often stay indoors on rainy days to avoid getting wet. Rain can therefore lead to an introspective atmosphere, as noted in the song “Rainy Days And Mondays” by The Carpenters.

Dreaming of rain may symbolize that turning inward and reflecting on the complicated things in life is more important for you now than taking action to move forward.

Sadness

Rain can share water’s basic symbolism of emotions. In this context, a rain dream could represent the tears of sadness. This interpretation would be especially likely if the emotional atmosphere of the dream was sad. If the rain provides the emotional release you need, though, you might feel better afterwards.

Common Rain Dreams

Dream of walking in the rain

The meaning of a dream of walking in the rain could vary based on the intensity of the rain and the dream’s emotional atmosphere.

The song “Walking In The Rain” by The Ronettes depicts walking in the rain as a sweet, romantic experience. Some dreams of walking in the rain, especially if the rain is gentle, could suggest that this energy of renewal is or soon will be appearing in your life.

Dreaming of getting wet in the rain, however, could symbolize that you feel unprotected in some aspect of your life. An unpleasant walk in the rain where you just get soaked in your dream might show that you feel like the world in general is out to get you, as nothing seems to be going your way. If your feet are getting wet through holes in your shoes in your dream, though, it might symbolize that you are not taking care of yourself.

Dream of heavy rain and flood

The dream meaning of heavy rain has to do with the destructive potential of water, especially if the rain becomes a flood. Water dream symbolism includes emotions, so a dream of heavy rain could reflect that you or another person in your life is dealing with a lot of difficult emotions at this time.

Flood dream symbolism has to do with water out of control, so heavy rain becoming a flood in your dream may show that you or someone else is expressing emotion in a way that lacks boundaries. Not expressing emotion at all, however, could also lead to a flood if too much pressure builds up.

Alternately, a dream of a flood of water could just mean that you need to urinate, and this will generally be obvious when you wake up.

Dream of rain falling inside the house

Your house is supposed to protect you from the elements, so dreaming of rain falling inside your house may symbolize that you feel unprotected in some important way in your life. This dream could refer to financial anxieties, as it typically costs money to fix the sort of house problems that would lead to rain falling inside your house.

Rain, like other forms of water, can symbolize emotions, so a dream of rain falling inside your house could also symbolize emotional turmoil within your household.

As noted in house dream symbolism, your house can also serve as a symbol for your body in your dreams. Problems with your house in your dream may therefore refer to problems with corresponding parts of your body.

Rain falling inside your house would likely come from a leak in the roof, one of the main protective structures in a house. A dream of rain falling inside your house could symbolically correspond to a problem with boundaries in your body, where something got in that was not supposed to get in.

Home invasion dreams can similarly refer to certain types of physical illness in this way, especially those perceived to be caused by an outside invader. Of course, it is sometimes hard to tell the difference between vague symptoms that could be the beginning of a real illness and your own anxiety about the possibility of getting sick, so consult a healthcare professional if you feel that you need medical advice.

Dream of raining blood

A dream of raining blood is probably not primarily about either rain or blood. Instead, the dream meaning of raining blood, a common feature of apocalyptic stories, more likely has to do with a general sense that things have broken down in your life.

Rain is supposed to be water, so, for rain to be blood, the rules of reality have been broken. Following the rules of reality as best you can discern them is generally a way that you can feel you have control over your life, but apocalypse dreams often depict the rules of reality being broken in some obvious way, like with bloody rain or a dripping bloody moon. The symbolic meaning of apocalypse dreams is therefore often that you feel you lack control over your life.

Sometimes, though, any sort of dream of blood just means you will get your menstrual period soon. This could also refer to the menstrual cycle of your partner or another significant person in your life.

Dream of a rainforest

A rainforest is generally a place that is full of all kinds of life. Whether or not it is raining while you are there in your dream, dreaming of a rainforest could symbolize that you are energetic and connected to nature. As long as you are not getting attacked by one of the rainforest’s animals in your dream, dreaming of a rainforest should be a generally good omen.

Dream of a rainbow

A dream of rain that includes a rainbow can be a positive sign that your difficulties will be resolved. As discussed in rainbow dream symbolism, a rainbow in your dream may simply show your hope and optimistic belief that things will get better. That alone might not be enough to fix things, but it can go a long way.

A rainbow dream could also, however, show a connection between people or a promise to heal a relationship that has been through a rough patch. In this case, the rain in your dream might represent the rough patch.

Conclusion

The dream symbolism of rain, like other forms of water, is substantially about emotions. Your emotional experience of the dream can therefore be an important guide as to which possible interpretation of a rain dream is correct for you.