Español — Demonstratives
Spanish marks three degrees of distance: este (near the speaker), ese (near the listener) and aquel (far from both), matching the place adverbs aquí, ahí and allí. Each agrees in gender and number with its noun, and the invariable neuters esto, eso and aquello point to something unnamed or abstract.
How it works
The demonstrative agrees in gender and number with its noun: este libro, esta casa, estos coches, esas mesas. Distance sets the degree — aquí → este, ahí → ese, allí → aquel.
The forms
| Singular (m · f) | Plural (m · f) | Use |
|---|---|---|
| este · esta | estos · estas | near the speaker — aquí |
| ese · esa | esos · esas | near the listener — ahí |
| aquel · aquella | aquellos · aquellas | far from both — allí |
| esto | — | neuter: something near, unnamed or an idea |
| eso | — | neuter: something by the listener or just said |
| aquello | — | neuter: something remote or distant in time |
Good to know
The neuter forms esto, eso and aquello are invariable and never modify a noun — they stand alone for something unknown or an idea: ¿Qué es esto? Both ese and aquel mean “that”, but ese points to what is near the listener (ahí), while aquel points to what is far from both (allí).