How to Say Drinks in Italian: Water, Coffee, Tea, Juice, Milk, Soda
Learn six common Italian drink words and the pattern 'bevo ___' (I drink ___), with pronunciation, gender, and polite ordering phrases.
By MarcusFood & cafés · Yapr Learn
In this lesson you will learn the Italian words for six everyday drinks and how to say what you drink using the verb bere (to drink). Italian nouns have grammatical gender, so you will also learn the little words (articles) that go with each drink: for example, l'acqua (the water) but il caffè (the coffee). By the end you can name a drink, say 'I drink ___', and order politely in a bar or café.
By the end, you can…
- name six common drinks in Italian: water, coffee, tea, juice, milk, and soda.
- say 'I drink ___' using the correct form of the verb bere.
- use the correct article (il, la, l') with each drink noun.
- order a drink politely in a café using per favore.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
bevo l'acqua
I drink water
BEH-voh LAHK-kwah
Use l'acqua because acqua is feminine and begins with a vowel. In fast speech it sounds like 'beh-vol-lah-kwah'.
bevo il caffè
I drink coffee
BEH-voh eel kaf-FEH
Caffè is masculine and takes il. In Italy, il caffè by default means a small espresso, not a large American-style coffee.
bevo il tè
I drink tea
BEH-voh eel teh
Tè is masculine and takes il. The accent on è is important: tè means tea, while te (no accent) means 'you' as an object pronoun.
bevo il succo
I drink juice
BEH-voh eel SOO-koh
Succo is masculine and takes il. To name a specific juice, add di plus the fruit: succo d'arancia (orange juice), succo di mela (apple juice).
bevo il latte
I drink milk
BEH-voh eel LAHT-teh
Latte is masculine and takes il. Be careful: in English 'latte' is a coffee drink, but Italian latte simply means milk.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The verb bere (to drink) is irregular in the present tense. The forms you need most are: io bevo (I drink), tu bevi (you drink), lui/lei beve (he/she drinks). To say what you drink, put bevo before the drink noun with its article: bevo il caffè, bevo l'acqua, bevo il tè. For a negative sentence, add non before the verb: non bevo il caffè (I don't drink coffee). For a question, Italian often uses the same word order with rising intonation: Bevi il tè? (Do you drink tea?)
When to use it
Use bevo when you are talking about what you personally drink, either as a habit or right now. If you want to order in a café, a simple request is more natural than 'I drink': Un caffè, per favore (A coffee, please) or Vorrei un tè, per favore (I would like a tea, please). Use bevo when someone asks what you are drinking or what you usually drink: Bevo solo acqua (I only drink water). Remember that each drink keeps its own article: il caffè, il tè, il succo, il latte, la soda, l'acqua.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
Ciao! Cosa bevi?
Hi! What are you drinking?CHOW! KOH-zah BEH-vee?Bevo un succo d'arancia. E tu?
I'm drinking an orange juice. And you?BEH-voh oon SOO-koh dah-RAHN-chah. eh too?Io bevo un caffè. Vuoi anche tu un caffè?
I'm drinking a coffee. Do you want a coffee too?EE-oh BEH-voh oon kaf-FEH. VWOH-ee ahn-KEH too oon kaf-FEH?No, grazie. Preferisco il tè.
No, thanks. I prefer tea.noh, GRAH-tsee-eh. preh-feh-REE-skoh eel tehA little context goes a long way
In Italian bars and cafés, il caffè usually means a single espresso, and ordering 'un caffè' is normal and polite. Milk drinks like cappuccino are traditionally a morning choice, while many Italians avoid them after a large meal; this is a custom, not a rule. Acqua is often ordered as naturale (still) or frizzante (sparkling). Regional differences exist: in some areas you may hear bibita or gassosa for a sweet soda, while spuma can mean a specific type of soft drink.
One thing to watch for
Saying 'bevo caffè' without an article, or using la with a masculine drink like 'la caffè'.
Try this instead: Most Italian drink nouns need an article in this pattern. Say bevo il caffè, not bevo caffè. Match the article to the noun's gender: il caffè, il tè, il succo, il latte (masculine); la soda, l'acqua (feminine). For example, say Bevo il latte, not Bevo la latte.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you say 'I drink water' in Italian?
Show a sample answer
Bevo l'acqua.
Bevo is the 'io' form of bere, and acqua is feminine and starts with a vowel, so it takes l'. Bevo acqua without the article can be heard in some contexts, but l'acqua is the standard beginner form.
2Which article goes with caffè, and why?
Show a sample answer
Il caffè.
Caffè is a masculine singular noun, so it takes il. La caffè is incorrect because la is feminine. In a café you can also simply say Un caffè, per favore.
3How would you politely order a tea in a café?
Show a sample answer
Un tè, per favore. (or: Vorrei un tè, per favore.)
Un tè, per favore is short and polite. Vorrei un tè, per favore is softer and means 'I would like a tea, please'. Both are valid; the second is especially polite.
Learn each drink together with its article: l'acqua, il caffè, il tè, il succo, il latte, la soda. Then use bevo + article + drink to say what you drink, and order with per favore.
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