The cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp) it is a leguminous widely cultivated in Northeast of Brazil. In the state of Ceara, its cultivation is performed mainly by family farms who make use of traditional varieties of good adaptation to the growing region. Thus, characterizing traditional varieties with characteristics of adaptation to regions with water shortage is essential for the production of food in the world, especially in semi-arid regions. In this sense, the objective was to evaluate the physiological and biochemical responses in three genotypes of cowpea, being two traditional varieties grown in Ceara (Sempre-Verde and Cabeça-de-Gato) and a genotype characterized as a standard of drought tolerance (Pingo-de-Ouro-1,2) under three water regimes: irrigated, moderate deficit and severe water deficit. The parameters evaluated were: gas exchange, chlorophyll a fluorescence, photosynthetic pigments, organic solutes (proline, total carbohydrates, reducing and non-reducing carbohydrates), starch and enzyme activity (APX, G-POD, CAT and SOD). The genotype Pingo-de-Ouro-1,2 confirmed its tolerance pattern in a water deficit condition, presenting greater water potential, higher photosynthetic rate, high levels of total carbohydrates and high accumulation of proline. Among the traditional varieties, the Cabeça-de-Gato presented superior photosynthesis to Sempre-Verde higher Electron Transport Rate (ETR), reflecting in a greater photochemical quenching (qP) and a greater accumulation of proline, indicating that this variety presents more pronounced adaptive characteristics for water restriction conditions, which is a common condition to the Brazilian semiarid.