水

mizu

noun★Beginner

formal

Water (the liquid essential for life)

水を飲みます

I drink water

この湖の水はきれいです

The water in this lake is clean

💡

Can refer to both natural water (rivers, lakes) and drinking water. Often used in expressions about life and purity.

Collocations

水を飲むto drink water水を汲むto draw water水を浴びるto get wet

水に流すidiom

to let something go (literally 'let it flow with the water')

水を差すidiom

to spoil the mood (literally 'to pour cold water')

'水' frequently appears in compounds like '水道' (water supply), '水泳' (swimming), and '水分' (moisture).

When counting glasses of water, use 'コップ' (koppu) as the counter, e.g., '水を二コップ飲みました' (I drank two glasses of water).

From Old Japanese 'mizu', derived from Proto-Japonic *mitu. Related to Korean 'mul' (물) and Ryukyuan languages' similar terms.

In formal contexts, '水' can be used metaphorically to represent life or purity. In scientific contexts, it may refer specifically to H₂O.

水

water

root

✎ Noted on May 31, 2026JA → EN