Toads and snakes, knives and forks... Here are some of our favourite translations of the English phrases "It's raining cats and dogs" from around the world.

Cats and dogs, toads and snakes, knives and forks… you never quite know what’s going to come down with the next downpour! It’s amazing what falls out of the sky in different parts of the world: young cobblers in Germany and Denmark; frogs in France, Romania and Poland; tractors in Slovakia… wheelbarrows, puppies, axes, little old women and even pilot whales if you’re unlucky enough to get caught out in a storm in the Faroe Isles! Perhaps fair-weather walkers can be forgiven their qualms about walking in the rain when there’s a risk that a female troll might just land on your head?

Toads and snakes, knives and forks… even tractors and trolls — This chap would prefer it to rain "ropes"

Here are some of our favourite translations of the English idiom ‘it’s raining cats and dogs’.

English		It’s raining cats and dogs.
Welsh	Mae hi’n bwrw hen wragedd a ffyn.	It’s raining old women and walking sticks.
	Mae hi’n bwrw cyllyll a ffyrc.	It’s raining knives and forks.
Irish	Tá sé ag caitheamh sceana gréasaí.	It’s raining shoemakers’ knives.
Norwegian	Det regner trollkjerringer.	It’s raining female trolls.
Danish	Det regner skomagerdrenge.	It’s raining shoemakers’ apprentices.
Africaans	Ou vrouens met knopkieries reen.	It’s raining old women with clubs.
Czech	Padají trakaře.	It’s raining wheelbarrows.
Dutch	Het regent pijpestelen.	It’s raining pipe stems.
French	Il pleut des cordes.	It’s raining ropes.
Italian	Piove a catinelle.	It rains from basins
German	Es regnet gießt Schusterjungs.	It’s raining shoemaker boys.
	Es regnet junge Hunde.	It’s raining puppies.
Greek	Βρέχει καρεκλοπόδαρα (brékhei kareklopódara)	It’s raining chair legs.
Polish	Leje zabami.	It’s raining frogs.
Portuguese	Está chovendo barba de sapo.	It’s raining toads’ beards.
	Está chovendo canivetes.	It’s raining penknives.
Brazilian Portuguese	Chovem cobras e lagartos.	It’s raining snakes and lizards.
Slovak	Padajú traktory.	It’s raining tractors.
Croatian	Padaju sjekire.	It’s raining axes.
Bosnian	Padaju ćuskije.	It’s raining crowbars.
Swedish	Det ösregnar.	It’s raining ladles.
	Det regnar smådjävlar.	It’s raining little devils.
Flemish	Het regent kattenjongen.	It’s raining kittens.
Hindi	मुसलधार बारिश (musaldhār bārish)	It’s raining a stream of mallets.
Romanian	Plouă cu broaşte.	It’s raining frogs.
Spanish	Está lloviendo a cantaros	It’s raining jugs.
Frisian	It reint hynste-eagen.	It’s raining horse eyes.
Faroese	Tað regnar av grind.	It’s raining pilot whales.
Icelandic	Það rignir eld og brennustein	It’s raining fire and brimstone.
Columbian Spanish	Estan lloviendo hasta maridos.	It’s even raining husbands.
Japanese	土砂降りである (doshaburi de aru)	Earth and sand are falling.
Chinese	落狗屎 (lohk gáusí)	Dog poo is falling.
Hebrew	מבול משמיים mabul mi shamayim'	Floods from the sky.
Arabic	كب من عند الرب Kab min ind el rab	It's pouring from heaven.