我能要杯水吗？
wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?
In Chinese, 'can I have water?' is expressed as 我能要杯水吗？ (wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?)
This phrase is used as a polite request to ask for a glass of water. To increase the level of politeness, you can place 请 (qǐng), meaning 'please', at the beginning of the sentence.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Cantonese, spoken in Southern China, you would say 可唔可以俾我一杯水？ (Hó m̀h hóih běi ngó yāt bēui séui?) instead.
How does it change in a sentence?
The sentence ends with the particle 吗 (ma), which is used to turn a statement into a yes/no question.
How do you pronounce it?
wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?
Did you know?
- In many parts of China, asking for 水 (shuǐ) might lead a host to serve you warm water rather than chilled water, as drinking cold water is often considered unhealthy in traditional culture.
- The character 水 (shuǐ) is a pictograph that originally looked like a flowing stream of water.
- In some formal contexts, instead of the verb 要 (yào) for 'want', a speaker might use 麻烦 (má fan), which literally means 'to trouble someone', to be even more polite.
Examples in context
- 给我一杯水。Give me a glass of water.
- 好的，这是你要的。Sure, here you go.
- 我能要杯水吗？Wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?Can I have a cup of water?
- 不好意思，我能要杯水吗？Bù hǎoyìsi, wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?Excuse me, can I have a cup of water?
- 服务员，我能要杯水吗？Fúwùyuán, wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?Waiter, can I have a cup of water?
Example conversation
At a small cafe, a man is asking a waitress for water.
- 志强 Zhiqiang请问，我能要杯水吗？Qǐngwèn, wǒ néng yào bēi shuǐ ma?Excuse me, can I have a cup of water?
- 梓涵 Zihan好的，请稍等。Hǎo de, qǐng shāoděng.Okay, please wait a moment.
- 志强 Zhiqiang谢谢你。Xièxiè nǐ.Thank you.
- 梓涵 Zihan不客气，这是您的水。Bù kèqì, zhè shì nín de shuǐ.You're welcome, here is your water.
