How do I talk about the weather? Learn essential English phrases - Learn English with lingoneo (2024)

Table of Contents

• Learn Essential Phrases
  • Part 1: Asking About the Weather
  • Part 2: Describing the Weather
  • Part 3: Describing Feelings Towards the Weather
• Practice the Phrases
  • Relax while Listening to the Phrases

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⁠What's the weather like?

This is the most basic way to ask somebody to describe how the weather is. Another way to say this is ⁠How's the weather? You can make this question even more specific by adding words like today, later, or outside to the end of the question. For example, ⁠What's the weather like today?. Someone answering this question would then just describe the weather, for example like this: ⁠It's pretty chilly today.

⁠What's the weather going to be like?

This question is very similar to ⁠What's the weather like? There is, however, one big difference. What's the weather like? is asking how the weather is right now, but What's the weather going to be like? is asking how the weather will be at some point in the future. Again, you can add other words to this question to be more specific. For example, ⁠What is the weather going to be like later today?. You could answer with something like, ⁠It's going to be sunny all day.

⁠How many degrees is it outside?

Ask this question when you want to know what the exact temperature is. You could also use the question ⁠What's the temperature like?. A response to this question might look like, ⁠It's 77 °F out. In the English speaking world, there are two different systems for telling the temperature. Fahrenheit is used in the United States and its territories, while Celsius is used everywhere else.

⁠What did the forecast say this morning?

This question along with ⁠What did the forecast say the weather is going to be like today? refer to weather reports or weather broadcasts, which are usually given either early in the morning or late at night on TV or the radio. You can find out what scientists predict the weather is going to be like by watching TV, listening to the radio, or by using different apps on your phone. A typical response might look like: ⁠The forecast said it will rain this afternoon.

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⁠It's cold outside

There are a couple of different ways to describe the weather. One way is to use the sentence pattern It's + DESCRIPTION + outside. For example, ⁠It's sunny outside. A typical answer to this kind of sentence might describe the speaker's feelings towards the weather. A response to It's cold outside might be something like, ⁠Luckily, spring and warmer weather will be here soon.

⁠It looks nice out

An easy way to describe the weather is by using It looks + DESCRIPTION + out. ⁠It looks pretty stormy out is an example of this pattern. Again a typical response to a sentence like this might express the speaker's feelings towards the weather. For example, ⁠It's a perfect day to go for a walk could be a response to It looks nice out.

⁠It's raining right now

One way to describe the weather is to use It's + VERB + right now. A sentence like this will describe what the weather is currently doing. For example, ⁠It's snowing right now. You could respond to this kind of sentence in many ways. A response to It's raining right now might be something like this: ⁠We better not forget an umbrella.

⁠It looks like it's going to rain

Use the construction, It looks like it's going to + VERB, to describe what you think the weather is going to be like at some point in the future. For example, ⁠. A response to this would probably show the speaker's feelings towards the weather, for example: ⁠I really hope it doesn't actually rain because I wanted to go to the park today.

⁠The forecast said it will rain later

Sentences like this are used to tell what the weather forecast has predicted. Another way to say this sentence is ⁠The forecast is calling for rain later. You could respond to sentences like these in many different ways. For example like this: ⁠Maybe the rain will clear up before the game this afternoon.

⁠It's absolutely shorts weather!

You might hear this sentence as a description of summer weather. Sunshine, warm, and a cool breeze… That's the perfect weather to pull out your favorite pair of shorts and head outside to enjoy the sun! In response, you could say something like, ⁠Yeah, the weather is perfect today!.

⁠It's raining cats and dogs!

No, don't worry, cats and dogs are not actually falling from the sky! This is an English idiom and is just another way to say that ⁠It's pouring out or that ⁠It's raining hard outside. Another way to say these things is to say that ⁠It's coming down in buckets. Just imagine somebody in the sky pouring buckets of water down from clouds, and you'll get a good idea of how much it's raining! A response to this might look something like, ⁠I've never seen so much rain before!.

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⁠I hope that it won't rain

Use the sentence pattern I hope that + WISH to tell someone what you want the weather to be like. Some examples using this construction are, ⁠I hope that it doesn't snow today, ⁠I hope that it's sunny tomorrow or ⁠I hope that it stops raining. You can never be completely sure how the weather will be, so that's why we say: I hope. In response, you might agree or disagree, or even give your own opinion. For example, ⁠Me too, we've had enough rain this week.

⁠I'm a cold weather kind of person

This phrase describes somebody that likes cold weather more than warm weather. You can switch the adjective (here cold) out for other adjectives and even nouns. For example, you could say: ⁠I'm a summer weather kind of person or ⁠I'm a rainy weather kind of person. To answer this kind of sentence, you'd give your own opinion. A response to I'm a cold weather kind of person might look something like this: ⁠I can't stand the cold!.

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