rain check
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rain check
Where it comes from
1877 US in baseball; metaphorical usage from 1896, more generally from 1930. From at least 1870, baseball teams would reissue tickets in case of postponement due to rain, which became known as rain checks.
noun rain checks · raincheck · rain-check · raincheque · rain cheque · rain-cheque
- A reissue, at no extra charge, of a ticket for a baseball game or other outdoor event postponed or interrupted because of rain. With trembling fingers he pulled out his watch. The hands pointed to five minutes to three. A blessed vision came to him of a moist and disappointed crowd receiving rain-checks up at the Polo Grounds.
- A (special) price guarantee for a sold-out item or temporarily unavailable service. This means that if you go to the store for a half priced $25 turkey, but the turkeys are out, you can get a rain check. With the rain check, when those turkeys arrive again in a week or so, you will get half price, even if the sale is over.
- The promise to make good on any experience that the customer deems unsatisfactory. [Regarding visiting the Indianapolis, Indiana, chapter of the fraternity Kappa Sigma] […] if in any respect the affair does not suit you—call at the box office and you’ll get your money back or get a rain check, just as you please.
- In social interactions, a deferred invitation, or deferred acceptance of an invitation. I can't go with you to the museum this Saturday, but can I take a rain check and go some other day?
Translations
Every language
noun an extension or postponement of an offer
| Español | cheque pluvial, vale |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | お預け o-azuke, 延期 enki |
| 中文 | 改天 gǎitiān |
| Deutsch | Gutschein, Gutschrift, Verschieben auf später |
| Русский | утеши́тельный тало́н utešítelʹnyj talón |
Talk about this word "rain check." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/rain%20check. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. rain check. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/rain%20check "rain check." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/rain%20check.Cite this
@misc{rain_check_2026,
title = {rain check},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/rain%20check},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
