Published on May 5, 2023
How to use demonstrative pronouns in Spanish
Demonstrative pronouns in Spanish should be somewhat familiar to English speakers, as they serve the same function as “this,” “that,” “these” and “those.” As their name implies, they are pronouns that replace nouns to demonstrate what the speaker is referring to. While English uses only four demonstrative pronouns, Spanish has a lot more. And these words change depending on the gender of the object(s) and whether they are plural or singular.
Heads up: These same words are also used as Spanish demonstrative adjectives, with minor changes in grammar. Our focus for this article, though, will be to leave you with a clear understanding of demonstrative pronouns in Spanish and how to use them.
Demonstrative pronouns in Spanish take the place of a noun:
In the above example “the taco” is a noun that serves as the direct object in the first variation of the sentence. Este (literally: “this one”) is a demonstrative pronoun that replaces the word taco in the second variation.
Here are all the demonstrative pronouns in Spanish:
| Singular Demonstrative Pronouns | ||
| Masculine | Feminine | Neutral |
| Este libro (This book) | Esta cosa (This thing) | esto |
| Ese libro (That book) | Esa cosa (That thing) | eso |
| Aquel libro (That book over there) | Aquella cosa (That thing over there) | aquello |
| Plural Demonstrative Pronouns | |
| Masculine | Feminine |
| Estos libros (These books) | Estas cosas (These things) |
| Esos libros (Those books) | Esas cosas (Those things) |
| Aquellos libros (Those books over there) | Aquellas cosas (Those things over there) |
Notice that the demonstrative pronoun in Spanish may change its form based on the gender and quantity of the noun.
As a rule, there is a neutral form for singular demonstrative pronouns but not for plural ones. Neutral pronouns don’t change for gendered nouns. You can use neutral demonstrative pronouns in Spanish if you don’t know the name or gender of a noun, or if the idea is abstract:
Este, esta and esto mean “this” in Spanish. They are used when the object is very close, like so:
Ese, esa and eso mean “that” in Spanish. They are used when the object is near or within visual range:
Here are some examples to help clarify the above definitions:
If you’re confused about how these pronouns are used in real conversation, it may help to listen to a video in which native Spanish speakers from Spain refer to aquellas cervezas.
Demonstrative pronouns in Spanish can also be used as adjectives before a noun. These are called demonstrative adjectives.
In this example, esta (this) is an adjective that modifies the noun silla (chair). Which chair? This chair, i.e. the one close to the speaker.
In English, we only have one word for “that.” In Spanish, there are two: ese and aquel. Aquel means “that one over there.” Aquel is used when the object is further away — in most cases, out of view for both the listener and the speaker. “Further away” is defined a bit subjectively in this case, but the distance can range from across town to across the world:
In the second example above, note that when replacing a noun, we don’t use aquel. Instead, we use the neutral form, aquello.
Demonstrative pronouns in Spanish replace a noun with “this,” “that,” “these” or “those”. They also appear before a noun when you want to say, for example, “this apple” or “that car.” If you’ve ever wondered how to talk about this and that and everything in between, now you know!
So, where to go from here? If you’re from the United States, just remember not to point at things directly with your finger. It can be considered rude in Mexican culture and other parts of Latin America. Use your open hand to gesture (along with the appropriate demonstrative pronoun), and you’ll find success with demonstrative pronouns in Spanish sooner than you expected.
