Portuguese Phrase
Está chovendo canivetes!
Meaning
Literally ‘It’s raining knives!’, this Brazilian Portuguese idiom describes an extremely heavy downpour, similar to English ‘It’s raining cats and dogs’. The phrase is colorful and informal, often used to exaggerate how hard it’s raining.
When to use
Use it in casual conversation with friends or family when you want to emphasize how intense the rain is. Avoid it in formal writing, news reports, or when speaking to strangers you don’t know well.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Estáchovendocanivetes
Estar (temporary state)
‘Está’ is the third‑person singular present of ‘estar’, used for actions or conditions that are happening right now.
Gerundio (progressive)
‘Chovendo’ is the gerund form of ‘chover’ (to rain) and combines with ‘estar’ to create the progressive ‘is raining’.
Plural noun as metaphor
‘Canivetes’ (knives) is used figuratively; the plural emphasizes the intensity of the rain.
🗨In Conversation
Você viu o tempo lá fora?
Did you see the weather out there?
Está chovendo canivetes!
It’s raining knives!
✕Common Mistakes
É chovendo canivetes.
Use ‘estar’ for ongoing actions, not ‘ser’. ‘É’ describes permanent traits.
Está chovendo canivete.
The idiom requires the plural ‘canivetes’ to convey the image of many knives falling.
Há chovendo canivetes.
‘Há’ already means ‘there is/are’; combine it with a noun, not with a gerund.
↔Alternatives
Está chovendo muito
It’s raining a lot
Está chovendo a cântaros
It’s raining buckets
Está chovendo torrentes
It’s raining in torrents
Está chovendo canivetes
It’s raining knives
Cultural Tip
‘Canivetes’ as a rain metaphor is typical of Brazilian Portuguese and rarely heard in European Portuguese. It’s a playful, colloquial expression, so native speakers will smile when you use it, but keep it out of formal contexts. In some regions of Brazil you’ll also hear ‘Está chovendo canivetes de prata’, adding a humorous twist.