English Demonstrative Pronouns

Learn when and how to use demonstrative pronouns (this, that, these, those) for singular and plural nouns. Demonstrative pronouns and demonstrative adjectives are used in place of a noun phrase and indicate distance from the speaker. This can be physical or temporal distance. The four demonstrative pronouns are this, these, that, and those. “This” and “that” are used for singular nouns, and “these” and “those” are plural. In addition, “this” and “these” indicate something or things that are close to the speaker, and “that” and “those” describe something further away.

Examples:
This is my friend, Jessica.
Are those your shoes?

Demonstrative adjectives differ insofar as they don’t substitute for or replace a noun or pronoun; rather, they precede and specify a noun or nouns. Consider the following examples:

I saw a bird in the tree.  – This tree or that tree over there?
We like the flowers in your garden.  – Do you mean these blue ones or those yellow ones?

In the first example, “this” and “that” come right before the noun, “tree.” In the second, “these” and “those” are followed by adjectives and then the pronoun “ones.”  Note that “those” refers to flowers that are further from the speaker than “these.”