There is no hot water in Japan

Children are an endless source of wonder. Their learning process keeps giving me new insights into the Japanese language. Here’s a conversation with my 14-year-old son on a Sunday morning at home.

Me: "Do you have something to eat for lunch?"

My son: "あつい みず ある？"

Translated, this would be, "Is there hot water?" Only then did I understand his question.

In Japanese, there is no such thing as "hot water." Water is not just hot. It can be cold, cool, lukewarm, but not "hot." That’s because hot water has its own word: 湯 (Yu) or お湯 (Oyu). I wonder how other languages handle this—do they say "hot + water," or do they have a separate word, too?

By the way, my son was asking for hot water for his instant cup noodles...!