noun
passing shower; sudden rain
A brief, often intense shower that starts and stops suddenly. Common in literary and poetic contexts.
村雨が通り過ぎると、空に虹がかかった。
After the passing shower moved through, a rainbow appeared in the sky.
午後は村雨が何度も降ったりやんだりした。
In the afternoon, passing showers came and went repeatedly.
The word is of native Japanese origin. The kanji 村雨 are ateji (phonetic equivalents) and do not directly contribute to the meaning. The reading むらさめ likely derives from 群れ (mure, 'cluster') and 雨 (ame, 'rain'), suggesting a clustered or intermittent rain.