Unit 5 — This / That / These / Those
In English we use demonstrative words to point to people or things. The word we use depends on two things:
- Distance — is the thing close to the speaker or not close to the speaker?
- Number — is it one thing (singular) or more than one (plural)?
| Close to speaker (here) | Not close to speaker (there) | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular (1) | this book | that book |
| Plural (2+) | these books | those books |
Quick rules
- this = one thing, here (close to me)
- that = one thing, there (not close to me)
- these = many things, here (close to me)
- those = many things, there (not close to me)
Examples
- This is my pen. (The pen is in my hand.)
- That is your bag, over there on the chair.
- These are my new shoes. (I am wearing them.)
- Those are the mountains I told you about. (Far away.)
- I like this song. (The song is playing now.)
- I didn’t like that movie. (The movie we saw last week.)
- These cookies smell great! (They are on the plate next to me.)
- Those kids are my neighbors. (They are across the street.)
Time expressions
We also use this / that / these / those for time:
- this morning / this week / this year — the present time
- these days — nowadays
- that day / that summer — a time in the past
- those days / those years — a period in the past
Tip: If you can replace the word with here, use this or these. If you can replace it with there, use that or those.
Practice — Complete the sentences
Choose the correct word (this / that / these / those). Pay attention to distance (here or there) and number (one or many). At the end you’ll see your score and can retest only the questions you missed.
