Water is capable of dissolving a variety of different substances, which is why it is such a good solvent. And, water is called the "universal solvent" because itdissolves more substances than any other liquid. ... This allows the watermolecule to become attracted to many other different types of molecules.
Molecules that have partially charged positive and negative areas are polar. Because water molecules are polar, water can dissolve many other polarsubstances. Water can also dissolve ionic compounds such as table salt.