This study was conducted to assess the status of nitrate pollution in selected water sources inrnAddis Ababa with the objective of understanding the extent and mechanism of nitrate pollutionrnand to map the distribution in the study area. 28 primary and 75 secondary data from 89 sitesrnwere used. Standard method for the examination of water and waste water (APHA, 2005) hadrnbeen used for laboratory analyses. NO3rn-, NO2rn-, and PO4rn3- were analyzed by UVSpectrophotometer,rnHACH DR-4000 and Cl- was determined by mercuric nitrate method alongrnwith in-situ measured physico-chemical variables like pH, total dissolved solids, electricalrnconductivity, and temperature . Then, by taking nitrate as important parameter primary andrnsecondary data were analyzed with SPSS and MS-Excel spread sheet. The results showed thatrnthe mean and standard deviation of nitrate and nitrite concentrations (mg/L-1) in water samplesrnwere 52.03 + 40.16 and 0.03 + 0.01 respectively. Samples from 9 sites (Coca Cola well , RasrnMekonen spring, Tsebay Maremiya well, Anwar Mosque well, Africa Hotel well, Lideta spring,rnMekanisa Abo spring, Abunearegawi spring and Ras Hotel well ) are found contaminated andrnhad more than the maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) of nitrate. The distribution andrnextent of NO3rn- is mapped based on the result and showed the central part of the city had higherrnconcentration from 58 to 102mg/L-1 whereas the upper part of the city had lower concentrationrn0.1 to 6.6mg/L-1. Since high concentration of nitrate is a public health concern especially forrninfants under the age of six months which causes methemoglobinemia (blue-baby syndrome)rnthe analyses result in the central sites revealed that the water is unsafe from nitrate and nitriternpollution points of view. Pearsonâ€™s paired samples analysis showed positive correlation b/n NO3rn-rnand Cl- at a significant level of 0.01(99%) with a regression equation (Cl- = 0.868 NO3rn- + 11.276rn;R2 = 6.288) suggesting that the pollution of both NO3rn- and Cl- might be due to the similarrnsources like seepage of pit latrines and infiltration of polluted effluents. A management option isrnvery essential and it is necessary to apply some actions to reduce/remove nitrate from drinkingrnwater sources by either abandoning the sources or by applying treatment methods like ionexchange,rnreverse osmosis, and distillation as possible as at a lower and effective cost. It isrnconcluded that water resources should not be at a closer distances to pit latrines and pollutedrndischarges.