euria ari du
Talking About the Weather
For rain or snow falling now, say Euria ari du (It is raining) or Elurra ari du (It is snowing). For cold and heat, say Hotz egiten du or Bero egiten du.
How It Works
Falling now: ari du. Euria ari du (It is raining), Elurra ari du (It is snowing), Kazkabarra ari du (It is hailing). In the past: Euria ari zuen (It was raining). Unlike the normal progressive, which takes naiz or da, weather ari takes du. Iluntzen ari du (It is getting dark) works the same way.
Finished or usual: egin. When the rain is over, or when you talk about what usually happens, use egin: Goiz guztian euria egin du (It has rained all morning), Iaz elur asko egin zuen (It snowed a lot last year), Hemen euri asko egiten du (It rains a lot here).
Cold and heat. Hotz egiten du (It is cold) and Bero egiten du (It is hot) are noun + egin expressions, so hotz and bero stay bare: Gaur hotz egiten du.
The weather in general: egon. Eguraldi ona dago (The weather is nice), Eguraldi txarra dago (The weather is bad), Zer eguraldi dago? (What is the weather like?) For wind, Haizea dabil (It is windy) uses ibili.
Other accepted forms. Euskaltzaindia also accepts Euria da for rain in progress, and in the West you will hear Euria dihardu. Rain itself is never said with egon: not euria dago.
Examples (6)
- Euria ari du.
It is raining.
Rain falling now: ari with du.
- Begira, elurra ari du!
Look, it is snowing!
- Gaur hotz egiten du.
It is cold today.
hotz stays bare, with no article.
- Udan bero egiten du.
It is hot in the summer.
- Atzo goiz guztian euria egin zuen.
It rained all morning yesterday.
The rain is over, so egin, not ari.
- Eguraldi ona dago gaur.
The weather is nice today.
Common Mistakes
Using da with weather ari.
Euria ari da.Euria ari du.Weather ari takes the du auxiliary, unlike ari naiz or ari da for people.
Using egon for rain.
Euria dago.Euria ari du.Rain and snow falling now are said with ari du. egon is used for the weather in general: Eguraldi ona dago.
Using egiten du for rain that is falling right now.
Begira, euria egiten du!Begira, euria ari du!euria egiten du means it rains, as a general fact. For rain falling at this moment, use ari du.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Weather talk uses the progressive and egin verbs.
Related Patterns
- egon: nago / zaude / dagoThe Verb Egon (To Be Somewhere)
egon gives the general weather: Eguraldi ona dago.
Level 1 - -tzen + AuxiliaryThe Present Habitual
euria egiten du is the habitual present: it rains, in general.
Level 1 - ibili: nabil / zabiltza / dabilGetting Around (Nabil, Zabiltza, Dabil)
dabil is used for wind: Haizea dabil.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice euria ari du in Bubblegum
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