Learn Hardcore Italian: Riempio la bottiglietta d’acqua alla fontanella del parco. - I fill the little bottle with water at the park fountain.

Riempio la bottiglietta d’acqua alla fontanella del parco.

I fill the little bottle with water at the park fountain.

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Questions & Answers about Riempio la bottiglietta d’acqua alla fontanella del parco.

Why is bottiglietta used instead of bottiglia?

The suffix -etta is a diminutive. It makes bottiglia (“bottle”) into bottiglietta, meaning “small bottle” or “water‐bottle.” Italians often use the diminutive to refer to single‐serve plastic bottles of water.

What does d’acqua mean and why is there an apostrophe?

D’acqua is simply di + acqua (“of water” or “some water”). When di comes before a vowel, you drop the “i” and replace it with an apostrophe: di + acqua → d’ + acqua → d’acqua.

Why is there no article before acqua (“the water”)? Shouldn’t it be dell’acqua?

Here d’ expresses a partitive sense (“some water”) rather than a definite one. Think of “I fill the bottle with water,” not “with the water” (as if you had a specific water already introduced). If you said dell’acqua, it would be di + la + acqua, meaning “of the water” (a specific water).

Why is the verb riempio followed by di and not con?

In Italian, when you fill something with a liquid (or powder), you use riempire di.
Examples:
• Riempire un bicchiere d’acqua (“fill a glass with water”)
• Riempire la vasca di schiuma (“fill the tub with foam”)
You could use con to talk about filling a container with distinct objects (e.g. libri, fiori), but liquids normally take di.

Why do we say alla fontanella and not da or in?

Here a + la = alla marks the place where you’re performing the action: “at the fountain.” You’re going to the fountain and filling the bottle there.
• If you said dalla fontanella, that would literally mean “from the fountain,” focusing on the origin of the water.
• Nella fontanella would mean “inside the fountain,” which doesn’t make sense for filling a bottle.

What is the difference between fontana and fontanella?

Fontana is a general word for “fountain.” Fontanella is the diminutive, “little fountain.” In many Italian parks or city squares you find small drinking‐water spouts called fontanelle.

Why is it del parco after fontanella?

Fontanella del parco literally means “the fountain of the park.”
• del is di + il, marking possession or belonging (the park’s fountain).
If you wanted to say “a fountain in the park,” you could say una fontanella nel parco, but here we’re specifying “the park’s (own) fountain.”

Could we rephrase the sentence as “Riempio la bottiglietta con l’acqua della fontanella del parco.”?

Yes, that works and is perfectly understandable.
• con l’acqua + della fontanella (“with the water of the fountain”)
This version emphasizes the specific water source, whereas the original d’acqua alla fontanella focuses more on the act of filling at that spot.

What person and tense is riempio?

Riempio is the io (first person singular) form of riempire in the present indicative. It simply means “I fill (up).”