That said, skyfall isn't quite as dramatic as it sounds. It's the Swedish term for "extremely heavy rain", specifically when there's a lot of precipitation over a short period, so in English you could translate it as "downpour" or "cloudburst".
The official definition of skyfall is either at least 50 millimetres within an hour, which is quite rare, or at least 1 millimetre within a minute. But the term is often used even when these amounts haven't been officially measured.
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After skyfall, there's often flooding due to the lack of time for water to drain away, and it can lead to serious damage.
It might come as a surprise that skyfall is most common during Sweden's summer season, often in connection with thunderstorms, and it's a phenomenon expected to become more common due to climate change as average temperatures rise.
The word's origins are relatively clear. Sky comes from the Old Norse word ský, also the origin of English "sky", while fall is a noun meaning "fall/decline", from the verb falla (to fall). But be aware that the usual word for "sky" in Swedish is himmel, which has Old Saxon origins.
Sky is still used in some compound words such as skyfall, skyskrapa (skyscraper) and skybar (rooftop bar).
Example sentences:
Trafikstörningar väntas efter skyfall
Traffic disruption expected after heavy rain
Vi måste förbereda oss för skyfall
We need to prepare for heavy rain
Villa, Volvo, Vovve: The Local’s Word Guide to Swedish Life, written by The Local’s journalists, is available to order. Head to lysforlag.com/vvv to read more about it. It is also possible to buy your copy from Amazon US, Amazon UK, Bokus or Adlibris.
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