Quiero beber agua.

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Breakdown of Quiero beber agua.

• querer: to want
• el agua: the water
• beber: to drink

Questions & Answers about Quiero beber agua.

Why is it quiero and not quieres?

The word quiero is the first-person singular form of the verb querer, meaning I want, while quieres is the second-person singular form, meaning you want. Since the sentence expresses what I want, we use quiero.

Why do we say beber instead of tomar?

Both beber and tomar can mean to drink in Spanish. In everyday conversation, tomar is often used more generally (for example, tomar un café = to have a coffee), while beber is specifically focused on the act of drinking. In Spain, it’s very common to say beber agua for to drink water.

Why isn’t there an article before agua?

In Spanish, articles can be omitted when you’re speaking in very general terms about something, especially when talking about food or drink in a non-specific sense. Since this sentence just expresses wanting to drink water in general (not a specific glass of water), no article is required.

Isn’t agua feminine? Why don’t we say la agua?