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in spite of opposition: The chairman railroaded the plan through the committee. 3 AmE to send (goods) by railway
Rail•track /'reɪltræk/ trademark a private British railway company, which owned and looked after most of the railway tracks in the UK from 1996 until 2001. It was closed down by the government for not doing its job properly, for not operating the system safely, and for getting into debt.
rail•way /'reɪlweɪ/ BrE || railroad AmE — n 1 a track for trains: a railway locomotive 2 a system of these tracks, with its engines, stations etc: I got a job on the railway(s) as a booking clerk.
'Railway ,Children, The (1970) a British film, based on the book by E. Nesbit, about three children at the beginning of the 20th century and the adventures they have around the railway near their home
'railway line also 'railway track BrE || railroad AmE — n a stretch of railway going between one place and another: the London to Leeds railway line | a disused railway line
rail•way•man /'reɪlweɪmən/ n pl. -men /mən/ BrE a man who works on the railways
'railway ,station BrE || 'railroad ,station AmE — n a STATION
rai•ment /'reɪmənt/ n [U] lit clothes
rain¹ /reɪn/ n 1 [U] water falling in separate drops from the clouds; the fall of these drops: The rain fell continuously. | The crops need rain. | She went out in the rain without a coat. | It looks like rain. (=there will probably be rain) | a rain cloud | (BrE) It's pouring with rain. (=raining very hard) 2 [C] a fall of rain of the stated type: A heavy rain began to fall. 3 [S+of] a thick fall: a rain of arrows/of questions 4 as right as rain infml in perfect health: Jane's been ill, but she's as right as rain now. 5 (come) rain or shine whatever happens; whether things are good or bad: She's always there, come rain or shine. → see also RAINS, ACID RAIN →-less adj
USAGE 1 Compare rain, hail, snow, and sleet. Rain is water falling from the clouds. Hail is rain which falls as hard frozen drops. Snow is frozen rain that falls in soft white pieces. Sleet is rain falling as snow but partly melted. 2 If it is raining very heavily we say it is pouring but if it is raining very lightly we say it is drizzling. 3 A shower is a fall of rain that does not last very long. A downpour is a heavy fall of rain. A blizzard is a heavy fall of snow, with strong winds.
rain² v 1 [I+I] (of rain) to fall: It's raining. | It began to rain hard. 2 [I+adv/prep;T+obj+adv/prep] to (cause to) fall like rain: Tears rained down her cheeks. | Their rich uncle rained gifts on the children. | to rain (down) insults on someone 3 it never rains but it pours saying when one thing goes wrong, everything starts to go wrong 4 rain cats and dogs infml to rain very heavily
rain sthg. ↔ off BrE || rain sthg. ↔ out especially AmE — phr v [T usually pass.] infml to cause (an event or activity) to stop because of rain: The game was rained off.
rain•bow /'reɪnbəʊ/ n an arch of different colours that sometimes appears in the sky after rain: (fig.) They've painted their house (in) all the colours of the rainbow. (=in many bright colours)
'rainbow coa,lition n a group of people of different races or political parties who work together on social and political problems, especially problems of CIVIL RIGHTS
'rainbow ,guide n a member of an association, the youngest branch of the Guides, for training girls aged five to seven to be independent
,Rainbow 'Warrior a ship belonging to the organization GREENPEACE, used for getting information about activities harmful to the environment and trying to prevent them
'rain check n infml, especially AmE a ticket which can be used another time, given to the holder of a ticket for an event (such as a game, play, or CONCERT) which is not going to take place: Rainchecks were issued to the fans and the game was rescheduled for tomorrow night. | (fig.) 'Can I buy you a cup of coffee?' 'No thanks, but I'll take a raincheck.' (=I'll accept your invitation at another time)
rain•coat /'reɪnkəʊt/ n a light coat worn to keep the wearer dry when it rains
rain•drop /'reɪndrp||-drɑːp/ n a single drop of rain
rain•fall /'reɪnfɔːl/ n [C,U] the amount of rain or snow that falls in an area in a certain time: This area has (a) very low rainfall.
'rain ,forest n a tropical forest with tall trees growing thickly together and with a high rainfall. People usually think of the rain forest of South America, known for its many different SPECIES of plant and animal life. There is a lot of discussion about the destruction of the rain forest and the effect this has on the world CLIMATE, and many people feel that the rain forest must be preserved.
'rain gauge n an instrument for measuring the rainfall
Rai-ni-er, Mount /'reɪnɪə||rə'nɪər/ a mountain in the west of the state of Washington, US, the highest mountain in the CASCADE RANGE
Rai-ni-er, Prince /'reɪnɪə||rə'nɪər/ (1923–) the Prince of Monaco who married Grace Kelly, a famous film actress from the US, in 1956. He has ruled Monaco since 1949.
rain•proof /'reɪnpruːf/ adj able to keep rain out: a rainproof jacket
rains /reɪnz/ n [the P] the season in tropical countries when rain falls continually; MONSOON: The rains have started early this year.
rain•storm /'reɪnstɔːm||-ɔːrm/ n a sudden heavy fall of rain
rain•wa•ter /'reɪnwɔːtə||-wɔː-, -wɑː-/ n [U] water that has fallen as rain
rain•wear /'reɪnweər/ n [U] clothes to be worn in the rain which do not allow water through
rain•y /'reɪni/ adj having a lot of rain: a very rainy day/place | the rainy season (=the rains) 2 for a rainy day for a (future) time when money may be needed: to save up for a rainy day
raise¹ /reɪz/ v [T] 1 to lift, push, or move upwards: He raised the lid of the box. | I raised my hat. | She raised her finger to her lips as a sign for silence. | He raised the fallen child to its feet. (=helped it to stand) → opposite LOWER 2 [(to)] a) to increase in amount, size etc: to raise the rent/the temperature/someone's pay b) to bring to a higher level, rank, or degree: The builders raised the ceiling by six inches. | He was raised to the rank of captain. | to raise one's voice (=shout) in anger | I don't want to raise your hopes unduly. (=make you too hopeful) → opposite LOWER 3 to collect; together: The king raised an army. | an appeal to raise money for victims of the disaster 4 to produce, cause to grow or develop, and look after (living things): I've raised five children. | They raise horses/wheat. → compare REAR 5 to mention or introduce (a subject) for consideration: There's an important point I want to raise. | to raise a question/issue 6 a) to make (a noise): The men raised a cheer/a shout. | to raise the alarm b) to cause people to make (a noise): Her joke raised a laugh. 7 to cause to appear or exist: The car raised a cloud of dust as it rushed past. | His long absence raised doubts/fears about his safety. 8 fml to build (something high and noticeable): to raise a monument 9 to bring to an end (something that controls or forbids): to raise a siege/an embargo 10 to bring (a dead person) back to life 11 to make a higher BID than (a player in a game of cards): I'll raise you! 12 to get in touch by radio with: I can't raise Melbourne. 13 raise a number to the power of another number to multiply a number by itself the stated number of times: 2 raised to the power of 3 (=2³) is 8. 14 raise Cain/the devil/hell/the roof infml to become very angry: Mother will raise hell if you wake the baby. 15 raise one's eyebrows (at) to express surprise, doubt, displeasure or disapproval (at), (as if) by raising the two lines of hair above one's eyes: There were a lot of raised eyebrows/a lot of eyebrows raised at the news of the minister's dismissal. 16 raise one's hand to/against someone to make a movement to hit someone → see RISE (USAGE)
raise² n AmE for RISE: a salary raise
rais•er /'reɪzər/ n (usually in comb.) 1 a person who raises especially money or animals: a fund-raiser | a cattle raiser 2 a person who causes: A fire-raiser is someone who sets fire to buildings on purpose. → see also CURTAIN RAISER
rai•sin /'reɪzn/ n a sweet dried GRAPE used in cakes etc