This, that, these and those

What you'll learn

Use these words to point to people or things.

	Near	Far
One thing	this	that
Two or more things	these	those

Start with these examples

• This book is new. (near, one book)
• That car is red. (far, one car)
• These shoes are mine. (near, more than one shoe)
• Those houses are old. (far, more than one house)

Use them before a noun

this/that/these/those + noun

• this phone
• that restaurant
• these keys
• those children

You can also use them alone when the noun is clear.

• Which bag is yours? — This one.
• Are these your keys? — Yes, they are.

Number is important

• this / that + singular noun

• these / those + plural noun

• this shoe

• those shoes

Common mistakes

• this shoes → these shoes
• those car → that car
• these book → this book / these books
• That are my friends. → Those are my friends.

Quick check

• ___ pen here on my desk → This
• ___ mountains in the distance → Those
• ___ photos in my hand → These
• ___ shop across the street → That

Next step

Use there is and there are to say what exists in a place.