What does "shower" mean?
A brief fall of precipitation (spell of rain, or a similar fall of snow, sleet, or cascade); burst of hefty precipitation.
Shower
/ˈʃuː.ɐ/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A brief fall of precipitation (spell of rain, or a similar fall of snow, sleet, or cascade); burst of hefty precipitation.
- Grammar: shower is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: rain shower, abound, abundance, accord.
- Useful contrasts: bath, bathtub, bathtubs.
- Usage evidence: I usually take a shower in the evening.
How to use "shower"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "shower" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "shower" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "shower" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "shower" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "shower" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "rain shower" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "shower", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A brief fall of precipitation (spell of rain, or a similar fall of snow, sleet, or cascade); burst of hefty precipitation.
"Today there will be frequent showers and some sunny spells."
- 2 One who shows.
"When you show a credential there's a protocol whereby the showee has assurance that the shower possesses a credential of the particular type without actually seeing the bit string."
- 3 washing yourself by standing upright under water sprayed from a nozzle wordnet
- 4 A device for bathing by which water is made to fall on the body from a height, either from a tank or by the action of a pump.
- 5 An object or activity that is shown in a contest.
"That calf is going to be a great shower at the fair this year."
Show 16 more definitions
- 6 a plumbing fixture that sprays water over you wordnet
- 7 An instance of using of this device in order to bathe oneself.
"I’m going to have a shower."
- 8 A person whose penis is close to its erect size when flaccid; the penis itself. slang
"As a man who can best be described as a "grower not a shower", I helped Brent realize that many people in the gay community are concerned in a very adolescent way with their dick size, including me."
- 9 a sudden downpour (as of tears or sparks etc.) likened to a rain shower wordnet
- 10 A quantity of something that has characteristics of a rain shower.
"a shower of sparks; a meteor shower; a Gatorade shower"
- 11 a party of friends assembled to present gifts (usually of a specified kind) to a person wordnet
- 12 A party associated with a significant event in a person's life, at which the person usually receives gifts.
"Would male strippers be appropriate for the divorce shower?"
- 13 someone who organizes an exhibit for others to see wordnet
- 14 A party associated with a significant event in a person's life, at which the person usually receives gifts.; A bridal shower.
"The shower will be held at the home of the bridesmaid."
- 15 a brief period of precipitation wordnet
- 16 A party associated with a significant event in a person's life, at which the person usually receives gifts.; A baby shower.
"Her friends are throwing her a shower after her mom leaves."
- 17 A pattern where the juggler passes objects horizontally from one hand to the other around chest height, and upward over the juggler's head to return to the first hand.
"See also shower (juggling) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia"
- 18 A battle, an attack; conflict. obsolete
"With this I maye be sure to come sauf / and goo sauf / and that the quene shal haue her lyberte as she had before / and neuer for no thynge that hath ben surmysed afore this tyme / she neuer fro this day stande in no peryll / for els sayd sir launcelot I dare auenture me to kepe her from an harder shoure than euer I kepte her"
- 19 A shower of shit. Australia, Ireland, UK, derogatory
"You all behaved like a shower, now you are to be treated like a shower"
- 20 Used as an intensifying pluralizer or intensifier Ireland, derogatory, euphemistic
"It was one of the worst feelings in the H-Block, one of the worst experiences to sit and listen to somebody getting beat. Because you were totally powerless, and you would always get somebody shouting at the door, “You shower of bastards!” It was always a crowd of screws and one or two naked men in a cell. They had total control."
- 21 A group of people perceived as incompetent or worthless. British, informal, singular
"But when I tweeted it out, most of the responses (from the more than one million viewers) were along the lines of: 'what do you expect from this shower?"
Verb
- 1 To spray with (a specified liquid) (followed by with).
- 2 take a shower; wash one's body in the shower wordnet
- 3 To bathe using a shower.
- 4 provide abundantly with wordnet
- 5 To bestow liberally, to give or distribute in abundance.
"The individual in the army becomes used to holding human life in contempt, in fact the greater the slaughter, the greater is his merit; and the more medals, ribbons, and honors of hero-worship are showered on him, the more he becomes, after a time, indifferent to all sorts of human suffering and loss of human life."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 spray or sprinkle with wordnet
- 7 To rain in a shower; to cascade down. intransitive
- 8 expend profusely; also used with abstract nouns wordnet
- 9 rain abundantly wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"I usually take a shower in the evening."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "shower"?
Common synonyms include: rain shower, abound, abundance, accord, administer, aerosol.
How do you use "shower" in a sentence?
I usually take a shower in the evening.
How do you pronounce "shower"?
Pronounced /ˈʃuː.ɐ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English schour (“shower”), from Old English sċūr (“shower”), from Proto-West Germanic *skūru (“shower”), from Proto-Germanic *skūrō (“storm, short shower”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ḱēwer- (“north, north wind, cold wind, rain shower”). Cognates Cognate with Dutch schoer (“downpour, heavy rainshower”), German Schauer (“shower”), Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish skur (“shower”), Faroese skúrur (“shower”), Icelandic skúr (“shower”), Norn skur (“squall”), Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌿𐍂𐌰 (skūra, “storm”), Italian coro (“northwestern wind”), Spanish cauro (“northwestern wind”), Belarusian се́вер (sjévjer), сі́вер (sívjer), Bulgarian and Russian се́вер (séver, “north”), Czech and Slovak sever (“north”), Macedonian север (sever, “north”), Serbo-Croatian sȅvēr, sjȅvēr (“north”), Slovene sẹ́ver (“north”), Ukrainian сі́вер (síver, “cold, cold, bitter wind”).
Etymology 2
From Middle English showre, schawere, schewere (“one who exhibits something, actor; watchman, overseer, guide; sign; mirror; index finger”), from Old English sċēawere (“an observer, one who examines into a matter; a spy; mirror; actor, buffoon”), equivalent to show + -er. Cognate with Dutch schouwer (“observer, visionary, clairvoyant”), German Schauer (“an inspector”).