The object of the present invention is to provide a more practical liquid-absorbing substrate capable of absorbing not only water but also alcohols, wherein liquid absorbency and gel properties of the substrate can be easily controlled. Namely, the present invention relates to a liquid-absorbing substrate comprising: (A) a product obtained by hydrolysis and polycondensation of a compound represented by the formula (I) €ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ(R 1 ) n M(X) m-n €ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ€ƒ(I) (wherein, R 1 represents a hydrogen atom, C 1 -C 6 alkyl, or C 2 -C 6 alkenyl M represents a metal atom X represents a hydrolyzable group m represents the atomic valence of M and n represents an integer of 0 or 1.) in a solvent in the presence of a catalyst and (B) a cellulose derivative having a mass-average molecular weight of 1 × 10 5 to 5 × 10 6 .
