Unit 4.1
Demonstrative Pronouns
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Introduction
Pronouns [pronombres] are words that replace nouns (people, animals, facts or things) to avoid repetition.
Demonstrative pronouns [pronombres demostrativos] are used to name and distinguish items that have already been mentioned but without repeating them.
Form
Demonstrative pronouns are used instead of the noun as subject, CD or CI and vary in gender and number. They indicate the degree of closeness of a thing to the speaker, but unlike demonstrative adjectives, pronouns do not stand in front of the noun but replace it.
Demonstrative pronouns have the same forms as demonstrative adjectives:
| Distancia | Singular Masculino | Singular Femenino |
| Corta | este | esta |
| Media | ese | esa |
| Larga | aquel | aquella |
| Distancia | Plural Masculino | Plural Femenino |
| Corta | estos | estas |
| Media | esos | esas |
| Larga | aquellos | aquellas |
NOTE: There are neutral forms of the singular of the demonstrative pronouns: esto, eso, aquello. These always come before the copulative verb (ser, estar) in copulative sentences.
Example
- Esta tarde voy a hacer el pastel cambiando de ingredientes;
- Estos días estoy contenta, me apetece ir al parque;
- Pedro llamó a Miguel la semana pasada, pero este no le hizo caso;
- A la literatura barroca, que tanto me encanta, contribuyeron sobre todo Góngora y Quevedo, siendo este representante del conceptismo y aquel del culteranismo (este = Quevedo, aquel = Góngora);
- ¿Es este el libro que me pediste con tanta educación? → Sí, ese es;
- Aquella de allá es la chaqueta que os presté hace diez años.
Use
The demonstrative pronoun is used to:
- indicate the time at which the action is performed;
- refer to a person, an animal or a thing, and to determine the distance between them and the speaker;
- replace nouns that have already appeared in the discourse so that they are not repeated.
The use of different demonstrative pronouns responds to the different situations of the thing spoken about:
- este/-a/-os/-as: indicates proximity to the speaker;
- ese/-a/-a/-os/-as: indicates proximity to the listener;
- aquel/-a/–a/-os/-as: implies remoteness from both the speaker and the listener.
Esto, eso and aquello (neutral forms) are used to indicate something without saying the name.
Summary
Demonstrative pronouns serve to name and distinguish elements that have already been mentioned but without repeating them. In Spanish, they are divided into theree series: 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree, depending on the distance of the thing mentioned from the speaker. They can also refer to an unknown object. They also have variations in gender and number.
For example:
— «Esta mesa está rota.» = La mesa is near and is feminine singular;
— «Ese chico es muy alto.» = El chico is singular, masculine and is a bit far away;
— «Aquellas chicas son guapas.» = Las chicas are far away and are feminine and plural.
Check the contents of the {Form} section. Then move on the {Example} sections, which shows you the usage in context.
Exercises
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