The Rain Is Spain
Rex Harrison & Julie Andrews Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Poor Professor Higgins!
Night and day
He slaves away!
Oh, poor Professor Higgins!
All day long
On his feet;
Up and down until he's numb;
Doesn't eat;
Doesn't touch a crumb!
Poor Professor Higgins!
Poor Professor Higgins!
On he plods
Against all odds;
Oh, poor Professor Higgins!
Nine p.m.
Ten p.m.
On through midnight ev'ry night.
One a.m.
Two a.m.
Three...!
Quit, Professor Higgins!
Quit, Professor Higgins!
Hear our plea
Or payday we
Will quit, Professor Higgins!
Ay not I,
O not Ow,
Pounding pounding in our brain.
Ay not I,
O not Ow,
Don't say "Rine," say "Rain"
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
By George, she's got it!
By George, she's got it!
Now, once again where does it rain?
On the plain! On the plain!
And where's that soggy plain?
In Spain! In Spain!
The three
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
In Hartford, Hereford, and Hampshire...?
Hurricanes hardly happen.
How kind of you to let me come!
Now once again, where does it rain?
On the plain! On the plain!
And where's that blasted plain?
In Spain! In Spain!
The three
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
The lyrics to Rex Harrison's song "The Rain In Spain" from the musical "My Fair Lady" are a reflection of how Professor Higgins is tirelessly trying to teach Eliza Doolittle to speak proper English. The song starts off by showing sympathy towards Professor Higgins, who works day and night, standing on his feet and never taking a break or eating. The repeated phrase "Poor Professor Higgins" highlights the difficulty of his work and how he is going against all odds to train Eliza, leading his staff to plead with him to quit.
The next part of the song focuses on Eliza, who struggles with the pronunciation of the word "rain." She repeats "Ay not I, O not Ow," pounding it into her brain until she finally gets it right. The turning point in the song is when she finally pronounces "rain" correctly, and this prompts the iconic phrase, "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!" This breakthrough is celebrated with the exclamation "By George, she's got it!"
The final part of the song sees Professor Higgins interrogating Eliza on the geography of Spain, asking her where it rains. She answers with confidence that it rains in the plain, and he confirms that she is correct. The song concludes with the repeated phrase, "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!"
Line by Line Meaning
Poor Professor Higgins!
Sympathizing with Professor Higgins who is working endlessly
Night and day
He is working and sweating day and night
He slaves away!
He is working tirelessly
Oh, poor Professor Higgins!
Expressing sorrow for Professor Higgins' tough working schedule
All day long
He works ceaselessly through the day
On his feet;
Working on foot, standing for hours and hours
Up and down until he's numb;
Moving constantly until he becomes insensitive to the pain
Doesn't rest;
Not taking a break to relax
Doesn't eat;
Not taking a break for meals
Doesn't touch a crumb!
Not eating anything at all
On he plods
Continuing his work with determination
Against all odds;
Working against all difficulties and challenges
Nine p.m.
Working through the late hours of the night
Ten p.m.
Still working in the later part of the night
On through midnight ev'ry night.
Working through the long hours of midnight
One a.m.
Still working in the early morning hours
Two a.m.
Working till the wee hours of the morning
Three...!
Still no rest or break from working
Quit, Professor Higgins!
Imploring Professor Higgins to stop working incessantly
Hear our plea
Requesting him to listen to their appeal
Or payday we
They will quit if he does not take a break
Will quit, Professor Higgins!
Threatening to quit if he doesn't slow down
Ay not I,
Pleading to him to change his ways
O not Ow,
Showing confusion at his different way of speaking
Pounding pounding in our brain.
His constant shouting and barking orders at them is driving them crazy
Don't say "Rine," say "Rain"
Correcting his pronunciation of words
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
Explaining to him about the rainfall patterns in Spain
By George, she's got it!
Delighted that the character Eliza has finally succeeded in speaking with proper accent
Now, once again where does it rain?
Checking if Eliza has learned about the rainfall patterns
And where's that soggy plain?
Asking which plain in particular they are talking about
In Spain! In Spain!
Reiterating the fact that the plain is located in Spain
In Hartford, Hereford, and Hampshire...?
Asking if the same rainfall patterns can be found in these other locations as well
Hurricanes hardly happen.
Contrasting the weather patterns between different locations
How kind of you to let me come!
Expressing gratitude for the opportunity to learn
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
Reiterating the important lesson about rainfall in Spain
The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain!
Repeating and emphasizing the importance of the lesson
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ALAN JAY LERNER, FREDERICK LOEWE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Tangent_Pixel
It took me 25 years to realize they were talking about plains and not airplanes
@MeggieTheWerewolf
They .... are....?
@missdragon5892
@@RenaissanceEarCandy Plain as in an area of land.
@Namastephie
Renaissance Ear-Candy lol, the only difference between an airplane and an aeroplane is spelling. Not to mention that either spelling makes no sense. @tangent is cute and funny because she probably was young when she first heard it. But when people correct others and they are wrong ...🤦🏼♀️ It’s plaines
@missdragon5892
@@Namastephie No like plains as in the plains of africa, like an area of land.
@Namastephie
Miss Dragon 😂 I know what it means -years ago my 8th grade music class did a whole study on MFL. I was just pointing out to the other commenter that there is no difference in meaning of airplane and aeroplane as well as being wrong for thinking it’s about any kind of *plane
@hindsightpov4218
It’s not a coincidence when Henry stops lecturing Eliza to just say it properly and sincerely says that he believes in her that she was finally able to do it.
@anaussie213
Yep, and in fact a large part of teaching is having faith in your students ability to learn. He provided her the motivation to learn, and then the encouragement that she could succeed.
@silverkitty2503
she was inspired to do it ...she had put the work in ....and the work was paying off slowly...she needed inspiration and the LOVE of language
@ianashby6294
Classic movie