acqua in bottiglia
/ˈak.kwa in botˈtiʎ.ʎa/word by wordfeminine
To say bottled water in Italian, say acqua in bottiglia.
acqua in bottiglia is drinking water sold in a bottle. In restaurants and shops people more often just say acqua minerale.
Meaning: drinking water sold in a bottle (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally means water in bottle.
Which one should you use?
When ordering, ask for acqua naturale for still water and acqua frizzante for sparkling water.
Is it said differently in some regions?
Around Naples and in some other southern areas you may hear acqua 'mbottigliata.
How does it change in a sentence?
acqua is feminine. With the article it becomes l'acqua in bottiglia, and the plural acque in bottiglia refers to different brands or types.
How do you pronounce it?
The stress falls on the first syllable of acqua and on the second syllable of bottiglia.
Did you know?
- In many Italian cities, you will see nasoni or public fountains providing free, cold drinking water, making the purchase of acqua in bottiglia unnecessary for many residents.
- The word 'bottiglia' is an uncharacteristic guest in the Italian language. It was actually borrowed from the French word 'bouteille', rather than growing from native Latin roots like many other kitchen staples.
- In Italy, you can often find acqua frizzante that is naturally carbonated from the source, rather than having gas added by the manufacturer.
Examples in context
- Compri acqua in bottiglia?Do you buy bottled water?Here acqua in bottiglia is the object of a simple question.Tatoeba #11084322 by Guybrush88, translation #10559114 by CK
- Ho dell'acqua in bottiglia.I have bottled water.dell'acqua in bottiglia means some bottled water.Tatoeba #13078210 by Guybrush88, translation #2359361 by CK
- Tom compra l'acqua in bottiglia.Tom buys bottled water.With the article, l'acqua in bottiglia refers to bottled water in general.Tatoeba #13078484 by Guybrush88, translation #6273577 by CK
- Vorrei una bottiglia d'acqua, per favore.I would like a bottle of water, please.
- Mi passi l'acqua in bottiglietta, per cortesia?Could you pass me the bottled water, please?
- 13 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Chiara and Francesco are at a restaurant.
- ChiaraFrancesco, prendiamo dell'acqua in bottiglia?Francesco, shall we get some bottled water?
- FrancescoSì, preferisci quella naturale o frizzante?Yes, do you prefer still or sparkling?
- ChiaraPrendo quella naturale, grazie.I'll take the still one, thanks.
- FrancescoVa bene, chiamo subito il cameriere.Alright, I'll call the waiter right away.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bottled water” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (acqua, in, bottiglia) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries acqua, bottiglia, in, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
