torrential downpour torrential downpour

An airport spokesman said the torrential downpour caused 144 flights to be canceled and 93 flights delayed for more than an hour at the Beijing Capital International Airport by 9 pm Thursday.

首都国际机场一位发言人称，截至上周四晚9点，这场倾盆大雨导致144架航班被取消，93架航班延误超过一小时。

文中的torrential downpour就是“倾盆大雨”，类似的说法还有drenching downpour、come down in bucket/sheets、rainstorm、cloudburst、a deluge¹ (of rain)等等。暴雨来临前，北京市气象台发布了blue rainstorm warning（暴雨蓝色预警）。

关于大暴雨，还有一种非常形象的说法，就是rain cats and dogs。关于这一习语的起源有这样一种解释：During heavy rains in 17th century England, some city streets became raging rivers of filth² carrying many cats and dogs.（17世纪的英格兰在下大雨的时候，一些城市的街道就会水流成河，而且这些污水中还会飘浮着大量的死猫死狗。）

传说诺亚建好方舟后，八个人被带到船上。God shut the door and then the heavens opened and outpoured.（神关上了方舟之门，然后天开了，暴雨哗哗临降。）因此我们现在也用the heavens opened来形容下暴雨了，比如：We were waiting at the bus stop when the heavens opened.