Italian for Finding a Drinking Fountain Near a Landmark
Ask politely in Italian where a drinking fountain is near a church or piazza, and understand answers built on accanto a and dietro.
By SofiaGetting around · Yapr Learn
In many Italian towns, free drinking water comes from a fontanella, a small public fountain often found in a piazza or beside a church. This lesson teaches you to ask a passerby or a member of staff for the nearest one, naming a landmark so the answer is useful. You will practise two polite question patterns, learn to understand short directions with accanto a (next to) and dietro (behind), and pick up the vocabulary you need to confirm what you heard. The register is casual polite: friendly, brief, and suitable for strangers.
By the end, you can…
- ask where a drinking fountain is near a named landmark such as a church or piazza.
- understand and confirm short directions using accanto a and dietro.
- name the object I need (fontanella) and check that it is drinking water.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
Scusi, c'è una fontanella qui vicino?
Excuse me, is there a drinking fountain near here?
SKOO-zee, cheh OO-na fon-ta-NEL-la kwee vee-CHEE-no
The safest opener with a stranger. Scusi is polite and works with any age.
Sa dov'è la fontanella più vicina a Piazza del Duomo?
Do you know where the nearest drinking fountain to Piazza del Duomo is?
sa do-VEH la fon-ta-NEL-la pyoo vee-CHEE-na a PYA-tsa del DWOH-mo
Use with staff or when you want to anchor the question to a landmark. Sa dov'è is slightly more formal than sai dov'è.
È accanto alla chiesa o dietro?
Is it next to the church or behind it?
eh ak-KAN-to AL-la KYEH-za o DYEH-tro
Offers two options, which makes a quick answer easy. Accanto a and dietro are your two key position words.
Dietro la piazza, vicino alla fontana grande.
Behind the piazza, near the large fountain.
DYEH-tro la PYA-tsa, vee-CHEE-no AL-la fon-TA-na GRAN-deh
A typical short answer you may hear. Note that fontana is a decorative fountain; fontanella is the small drinking one.
Grazie, è acqua potabile?
Thanks, is it drinking water?
GRAH-tsyeh, eh AK-kwa po-TA-bee-leh
A useful confirmation. Potabile means safe to drink; you can also ask È potabile? on its own.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The core pattern is C'è una fontanella + location phrase. C'è means there is, and it stays singular for one fountain: C'è una fontanella accanto alla chiesa. To ask about the nearest one, use È + location: È dietro la piazza? or È accanto al municipio? Accanto a contracts with the article: accanto alla chiesa, accanto al duomo, accanto ai giardini. Dietro works the same way: dietro la piazza, dietro al mercato. If you want to name your landmark first, say Sa dov'è la fontanella più vicina a... and then add the place. Note that c'è is used for one fountain; for more than one, use ci sono: Ci sono fontanelle qui vicino?
When to use it
Use Scusi, c'è una fontanella qui vicino? when you simply need water and have no landmark in mind. Use Sa dov'è... with staff in a shop, bar or museum, because it is a touch more formal and signals you expect local knowledge. When someone answers with accanto a or dietro, repeat the key word back to confirm: Accanto alla chiesa, giusto? This avoids walking the wrong way. If the answer includes a piazza name you do not know, ask È lontana? (Is it far?) rather than guessing. Remember that dietro can stand alone as an adverb (È dietro, it's behind) or take a noun directly without a preposition (dietro la chiesa), unlike accanto a which always needs a.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
Scusi, sa dov'è la fontanella più vicina a Piazza del Duomo?
Excuse me, do you know where the nearest drinking fountain to Piazza del Duomo is?SKOO-zee, sa do-VEH la fon-ta-NEL-la pyoo vee-CHEE-na a PYA-tsa del DWOH-moSì, ce n'è una dietro la chiesa, accanto al bar.
Yes, there's one behind the church, next to the bar.see, cheh neh OO-na DYEH-tro la KYEH-za, ak-KAN-to al barDietro la chiesa e accanto al bar. È acqua potabile?
Behind the church and next to the bar. Is it drinking water?DYEH-tro la KYEH-za eh ak-KAN-to al bar. eh AK-kwa po-TA-bee-lehSì, è potabile. È quella piccola di ghisa.
Yes, it's drinkable. It's the small cast-iron one.see, eh po-TA-bee-leh. eh KWEL-la PEEK-ko-la dee GHEE-zaA little context goes a long way
Public drinking fountains are common in Italian towns, often in a piazza or beside a church, and the water is generally free. A fontanella is the small drinking fountain; a fontana is usually a larger decorative one you should not drink from. Scusi is the standard polite opener with strangers, while scusami is more casual and better with people you know. In the north you may hear fontanella called fontanella dell'acqua potabile; in some southern towns people simply say l'acqua. Note that not every fontanella is guaranteed potable in every town, so the question È potabile? remains useful anywhere.
One thing to watch for
Asking Posso bere qui? (Can I drink here?) or using fontana when you mean the small drinking fountain.
Try this instead: Name the object directly: C'è una fontanella qui vicino? Fontanella is the small public drinking fountain; fontana often means a decorative fountain. If you are unsure about the water, ask È potabile? rather than asking permission to drink. Also avoid Posso bere qui?, which asks permission rather than about water quality.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1You are standing near a church and want to ask a passerby if there is a drinking fountain nearby. What do you say?
Show a sample answer
Scusi, c'è una fontanella qui vicino?
This is the standard polite opener: Scusi gets attention, c'è asks whether one exists, and qui vicino limits it to the area. Scusi, c'è una fontanella vicino alla chiesa? is also correct if you name the landmark.
2Someone tells you: È dietro la piazza, accanto al municipio. Where is the fountain?
Show a sample answer
Behind the piazza, next to the town hall.
Dietro means behind and accanto a means next to. Note the contraction accanto al municipio. If you are unsure, repeat it back: Dietro la piazza, giusto?
3You want to check that the water from the fountain is safe to drink. Which question fits best?
Show a sample answer
È potabile?
Potabile means drinkable, so È potabile? asks directly whether the water is safe. È acqua potabile? is equally correct and slightly more explicit. Asking Posso bere? sounds like a request for permission rather than a question about water quality.
Ask Scusi, c'è una fontanella qui vicino? or Sa dov'è la fontanella più vicina a... plus your landmark, then listen for accanto a and dietro, and confirm with È potabile? before you fill your bottle.
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