Abstract: The atmospheric water vapor transports associated with typical anomalous spring rainfall patterns have been investigated using NCEP/NCAR, ERA40 monthly mean reanalysis data and precipitation data of 160 stations in China during 1951－1999. Results show that origins of water vapor supply related to anomalous rainfall patterns are different from the climate mean situation. In anomalous pattern 1, with a heavier rainbelt along the South China coast, the main moisture comes from the Philippine Sea and the adjacent South China Sea. The background large-scale circulation changes include the intensification of the western Pacific subtropical high (WPSH) and the southwest shift of the East Asian jet stream (EAJS). In anomalous pattern 2, with a main rainbelt along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the origins of water vapor supply contain the western tropical Pacific and the tropical Indian Ocean. Both the WPSH and the EAJS move to the north of their normal position. In anomalous pattern 3, a rainy region is located in the Huaihe River valley. The moisture originates from the northwestern Pacific. The 500-hPa anticyclone anomaly moves to northeastern China and the EAJS is weaker than its normal condition. Although water vapor transport along the southern edge of the Tibetan Plateau is one of the main branches in the climate mean pattern, none of the typical water vapor transport related to typical anomalous rainfall reflects this water vapor flow.