The job of a measuring cup is to measure liquid, especially water that's used for cooking and baking. North America measures in cups and ounces, while the United Kingdom uses pints, ounces and metrics. Much of the rest of the world uses the metric measurement system. One cup of water contains eight ounces. Liquid measuring cups are made of either plastic or glass and have a handle that makes it easy to pour the water into pots and pans. The amount of liquid is labeled, usually in red, on the side of the measuring cup. One side of the measuring cup usually displays measurements in metric. In the metric system, 250 mL equals one cup of water.

Place your measuring cup on a table or any flat surface. It's best to measure near where you will be cooking as this will save you time.

Fill with water until it reaches the one-cup mark. The label will be listed on the side, about halfway up the measuring cup, depending on the size of that particular measuring cup.

Wait until the water has settled. By doing this, you'll figure out if you need more or less water in your measuring cup.

Read where the water is at eye level instead of looking down at the measuring cup. Doing this will lead to an accurate one-cup reading of your water.

Add more water or pour out extra water until you reach one cup.

Keep reading at eye level until you have reached one cup of water.