Demonstratives
What is a demonstrative? (English)
A demonstrative points to a specific thing based on distance from the speaker — near or far, in space or time.
| Distance | Singular | Plural |
|---|
| Near the speaker | this | these |
| Far from the speaker | that | those |
English demonstrative examples
| Sentence | Demonstrative |
|---|
| This book is mine. | this |
| These shoes are new. | these |
| That car is fast. | that |
| Those people are waiting. | those |
| I like this one. | this |
| That was a good movie. | that |
| These are my keys. | these |
| Those are not mine. | those |
| This is my house. | this |
| Look at that! | that |
Why it works this way
- English has only two distance levels: near (this/these) vs far (that/those)
- Demonstratives can act as adjectives (before a noun) or as pronouns (standing alone)
How Spanish handles demonstratives differently
- Spanish has three distance levels, not two: near the speaker, near the listener, and far from both
- Each level agrees with the noun’s gender and number, giving four forms per level
- Word order and usage as adjective/pronoun work the same as English (before the noun, or standing alone)
Key differences
| English | Spanish |
|---|
| 2 distance levels (this/that) | 3 distance levels (este/ese/aquel) |
| No gender agreement | Agrees with gender and number |
| ”this/that” also used loosely for time | Same three-way split extends to time as well |
The three distance levels
| Distance | Meaning | Masc. sing. | Fem. sing. | Masc. plural | Fem. plural |
|---|
| Near speaker (“this/these”) | close to me | este | esta | estos | estas |
| Near listener (“that/those”) | close to you | ese | esa | esos | esas |
| Far from both (“that/those” over there) | far from both of us | aquel | aquella | aquellos | aquellas |
English collapses ese and aquel into one word: “that.” Spanish keeps them distinct based on who’s closer to the thing.
Side-by-side: English → Spanish
este/esta/estos/estas — this / these (near me)
| English | Spanish |
|---|
| this book | este libro |
| this house | esta casa |
| these books | estos libros |
| these houses | estas casas |
| This is my phone. | Este es mi teléfono. |
| This pizza is delicious. | Esta pizza está deliciosa. |
| These shoes are new. | Estos zapatos son nuevos. |
| These photos are old. | Estas fotos son antiguas. |
| I like this one. | Me gusta este. |
| This week has been hard. | Esta semana ha sido difícil. |
ese/esa/esos/esas — that / those (near you)
| English | Spanish |
|---|
| that book (near you) | ese libro |
| that house (near you) | esa casa |
| those books (near you) | esos libros |
| those houses (near you) | esas casas |
| Is that your bag? | ¿Es esa tu bolsa? |
| That car is yours? | ¿Ese coche es tuyo? |
| Those shoes look nice. | Esos zapatos se ven bien. |
| Can you pass me that? | ¿Puedes pasarme eso? |
| That idea is good. | Esa idea es buena. |
| Those people next to you. | Esas personas a tu lado. |
aquel/aquella/aquellos/aquellas — that / those (over there)
| English | Spanish |
|---|
| that mountain (in the distance) | aquella montaña |
| that building (far away) | aquel edificio |
| those days (long ago) | aquellos días |
| those years (in the past) | aquellas años |
| That was a different time. | Aquello era otra época. |
| That house over there is beautiful. | Aquella casa de allí es preciosa. |
| Those people in the distance. | Aquellas personas a lo lejos. |
| I remember that summer. | Recuerdo aquel verano. |
| That was a long time ago. | Aquello fue hace mucho tiempo. |
| Those trees on the hill. | Aquellos árboles en la colina. |
Used for an unspecified or abstract thing — not a specific noun.
| Spanish | English |
|---|
| ¿Qué es esto? | What is this? |
| Eso no es verdad. | That’s not true. |
| Aquello fue hace años. | That was years ago. |
| No entiendo esto. | I don’t understand this. |
| Eso me sorprende. | That surprises me. |
Common mistakes
- ❌ Using only two distance levels like English → ✅ Spanish distinguishes ese (near you) from aquel (far from both)
- ❌ Forgetting gender agreement: este casa → ✅ esta casa
- ❌ Using a gendered form for an abstract idea → ✅ use the neuter: esto/eso/aquello for “this/that (thing/idea)”
- ❌ Confusing ese with este → ✅ este = near the speaker, ese = near the listener
Summary
- Spanish has three demonstrative distances: este (near me), ese (near you), aquel (far from both)
- Each has 4 forms for gender × number, plus a neuter form (esto/eso/aquello) for abstract things
- Function exactly like English demonstratives otherwise — before a noun or standing alone
See also: Adjectives — agreement rules demonstratives also follow.
See also: Nouns — gender these forms agree with.