The afternoon heat would also generate thunderstorms, which could be severe at inland North Island locations, Mr Corbett said.
A second trough would spread another band of rain or showers up the country on Wednesday and a third may appear over the weekend.
"The exact details of the weather for early next week and the run-up to Christmas still need to iron themselves out, but at this point it seems the weather might continue to be a mixed bag,'' Mr Corbett said.
"It's not going to be an ugly sabre-toothed tiger, but there might be some spots of rain around the country.''
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Current MetService forecast for Christmas Day:
* Auckland: Showers, westerlies. High of 21, overnight low of 16.
* Hastings: Showers, light winds. High of 22, overnight low of 15.
* Hamilton: Showers, little wind. High of 21, overnight low of 13.
* Wellington: One or two showers, northwesterlies. High of 17, overnight low of 15.
* Christchurch: Partly cloudy at first then rain with not much wind. High of 19, overnight low of 12.
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