water

Reading level: easy

Estimated CEFR level: A1 — Beginner

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun binary compound that occurs at room temperature as a clear colorless odorless tasteless liquid; freezes into ice below 0 degrees centigrade and boils above 100 degrees centigrade; widely used as a solvent
  2. noun the part of the earth's surface covered with water (such as a river or lake or ocean)
  3. noun once thought to be one of four elements composing the universe (Empedocles)

Etymology

From Middle English water, from Old English wæter (“water”), from Proto-West Germanic *watar, from Proto-Germanic *watōr (“water”), from Proto-Indo-European *wódr̥ (“water”). Cognates * Scots watter (“water”) * Yola wadher, waudher (“water”) * North Frisian waar, weeder, weeter, woar, woor, wååder, wåår (“water”) * Saterland Frisian Woater (“water”) * West Frisian wetter (“water”) * Cimbrian bassar, bazzar (“water”) * Dutch water (“water”) * Dutch Low Saxon water, wotter (“water”) * German Wasser (“water”) * German Low German Water, Woter (“water”) * Gottscheerish boßər, bàsser (“water”) * Limburgish Waater, water (“water”) * Luxembourgish Waasser (“water”) * Mòcheno bòsser (“water”) * Vilamovian woser (“water”) * West Flemish woater (“water”) * Yiddish וואַסער (vaser, “water”) * Danish vand (“water”) * Elfdalian wattn (“water”) * Faroese vatn (“water”) * Icelandic vatn (“water”) * Norwegian Nynorsk vatn (“water”) * Norwegian Bokmål vann (“water”) * Swedish vatten (“water”) * Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐍄𐍉 (watō, “water”) * Old Irish coin fodorne (“otters”, literally “water-dogs”) * Latin unda (“wave”) * Lithuanian vanduõ (“water”) * Polish woda (“water”) * Russian вода́ (vodá, “water”) * Albanian ujë (“water”) * Ancient Greek ὕδωρ (húdōr, “water”) * Armenian գետ (get, “river”) * Sanskrit उदन् (udán, “wave, water”) * Hittite 𒉿𒀀𒋻 (wa-a-tar, “water”)

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