agua tibia
/aɡwa tibja/from spelling rules
In Spanish, warm water is agua tibia.
The phrase agua tibia refers to water at a moderately high temperature that is neither hot nor cold.
Which one should you use?
It is important to distinguish between temperature levels. Use agua tibia for water that is warm, and use agua caliente for water that is hot.
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun agua is feminine, but when using the singular definite article, it is el agua tibia to avoid the clash of two 'a' sounds. Note that even when using the masculine article el, the adjective tibia remains in its feminine form.
Did you know?
- While tibia means 'warm' when describing water, it is also the anatomical term for the shin bone in the human leg.
- Because tibia refers to a lukewarm state, it is often used metaphorically in Spanish to describe someone who is indecisive or lacks conviction.
- The word tibia for 'warm' is a linguistic cousin to the English word 'tepid', as both derive from the Latin tepida.
Examples in context
- Lávate la cara con agua tibia y jabón.Wash your face with warm water and soap.This sentence shows how to use agua tibia when washing your face.Tatoeba #8636922 by pcarolina, translation #3714189 by Hybrid
- Es recomendable que lave el pene con jabón y agua tibia.It's recommended that you wash your penis with soap and warm water.This sentence shows how to use agua tibia in a recommendation for washing the penis.Tatoeba #9102989 by rafaeldejesus8199, translation #9102990 by rafaeldejesus8199
- Lávate las manos con agua tibia y jabón.Wash your hands with warm water and soap.This sentence shows how to use agua tibia when washing your hands.Tatoeba #13134523 by mexicanhere, translation #11887783 by Amastan
- Agua tibia a unos 30 grados CelsiusWarm water at around 30 degrees Celsius
- ¿Me puedes traer un vaso de agua calentita pero no muy caliente?Can you bring me a glass of warm water, but not too hot?
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucía and Javier are preparing a baby's bottle.
- LucíaJavier, ¿tienes el agua tibia para el biberón?Javier, do you have the warm water for the bottle?
- JavierSí, ya la calenté un poco.Yes, I already warmed it up a bit.
- LucíaPerfecto, comprueba que no esté muy caliente.Perfect, check that it isn't too hot.
- JavierEstá bien, es agua tibia y es segura.It's fine, it is warm water and it is safe.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries agua, tibia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
