Demonstrative Adjectives

Question

Overview

As the name implies, demonstrative adjectives demonstrate a quality about the noun they modify, in this case, the location in respect to the speaker or the listener. They are commonly used to say "which" noun or emphasize a noun.

Demonstrative Adjectives

Spanish has three categories of demonstrative adjectives, depending on the location of the noun to the speaker or listener, each with a feminine, masculine, singular, and plural form.

Copy Cat Forms

Notice that these are the same forms as demonstrative pronouns, but demonstrative adjectives do NOT carry tildes (written accents).

1. To describe a noun that is close to the speaker

Close

	Singular	Plural
Masculine	este (this)	estos (these)
Feminine	esta (this)	estas (these)

• Este restaurante es mi favorito. (This restaurant is my favorite.)
• Esta casa es grandísima. (This house is enormous.)
• ¡Estos burritos son fantásticos! (These burritos are fantastic!)
• Estas margaritas son ricas. (These margaritas are delicious.)

2. To describe a noun that is not very close to the speaker

Not Close

	Singular	Plural
Masculine	ese (that)	esos (those)
Feminine	esa (that)	esas (those)

• Quiero ese helado blanco. (I want that white ice cream.)
• Traeme esa camisa, por favor. (Bring me that shirt, please.)
• Esos monos son cómicos. (Those monkeys are funny.)
• Esas flores son mis favoritas. (Those flowers are my favorites.)

3. To describe a noun that is far away from the speaker

Far Away

	Singular	Plural
Masculine	aquel (that over there)	aquellos (those over there)
Feminine	aquella (that over there)	aquellas (those over there)

• Aquel león es peligroso. (That lion over there is dangerous.)
• Aquella chica es muy guapa. (That girl over there is really pretty.)
• Aquellos edificios son los más viejos de la ciudad. (Those buildings over there are the oldest in the city.)
• Aquellas nubes llevan la lluvia. (Those clouds over there bring the rain.)

Exercises

1) Write the correct form of the provided demonstrative adjective in each blank according to the gender and number of the noun.

Example: Me gusta ___|\___|\___|_ perfume. (este) -> Me gusta este perfume.

1. Ten cuidado con ___|\___|\___|__ pastelitos. (ese)
2. ¿Te gusta ___|\___|\___|_ cuadro? (este)
3. Voy a comprar ___|\___|\___|_ casa allí. (aquel)
4. En ___|\___|\___|_ sección de la librería, hay mucho libros en español. (ese)
5. Quiero pagar con ___|\___|\___|__ tarjeta de crédito. (este)

Answers

1. esos
2. este
3. aquella
4. esa
5. esta

• can you add some more practise questions here? 5 isn't enough! - santiago10 Jan 12, 2010
• Best explanation! - espanol5555 Jan 2, 2011
• Aquella chica es muy guapa. ---> Shouldn't "guapa" be "bonita"? - trumpethero1 Jan 19, 2011