LR - Los Adjetivos Demostrativos (Demonstrative Adjectives) (Lesson)

Los Adjetivos Demostrativos (Demonstrative Adjectives)

Demonstrative adjectives are used frequently in Spanish, especially when shopping. Think about a time you asked someone, "Do you like this color?" Pay close attention to the presentation as you will see some of the information on your grammar and final assessment. Make sure your speakers are turned up!

Please watch the following video.

 

As the name would indicate, "demonstratives" are words that help us "demonstrate/point out" where something is. They are quite often accompanied by pointing and gestures. Demonstratives fall into two categories: demonstrative adjectives and demonstrative pronouns. Our focus will be the adjectives.

Imagine that you're in a store browsing through merchandise and talking to a salesperson behind the counter. As you discuss the various products, you will likely use words like, "this," "that," "these," and "those."

I'd like to try on this ring.
How much does that book cost?
What are these toys made out of?
I want to buy three of those light bulbs.

The underlined words above are known as demonstrative adjectives. Which adjective you use depends on two things: 1) how many objects there are, and 2) how close they are to you. Using this information we can build a grid:

 

Este, Estos, Ese, and Esos

Spanish is similar, although with one major difference that we'll get to later.

Some examples:

Quisiera probarme este anillo. I'd like to try on this ring.

¿Cuánto cuesta ese libro? How much does that book cost?

¿De qué son estos juguetes? What are these toys made out of?

Quiero comprar tres de esos bombillos. I want to buy three of those light bulbs.

Please note that even though they are adjectives, we place este, ese, estos, and esos in front of the nouns they modify instead behind them like we normally do.

Also note that the demonstrative adjectives for nearby items are este and ese, not esto and eso. It may seem inconsistent with what you already know about adjectives, but that's just the way it is.

There is a little rhyme that can help you keep your demonstrative adjectives straight: "This" and "these" have t's, "that" and "those" don't.

Esta, Estas, Esa, and Esas

If that seemed too easy, it's because it is. Since adjectives (even the demonstrative kind) always agree in gender and in number with the nouns they modify, our Spanish chart needs to be a little more complex:

 

Note: Accent marks and pronunciation are important. Don't confuse esta, the adjective, with está, the form of estar.

Now we can talk about feminine objects as well:

Quisiera probarme esta pulsera. I'd like to try on this bracelet.

¿Cuánto cuesta esa revista? How much does that magazine cost?

¿De qué son estas camisas? What are these shirts made of?

Quiero comprar tres de esas bufandas. I'd like to buy three of those scarves.

The demonstrative adjectives changed to agree with the nouns they modify.

But we're still not done because, in addition to the "near" and "far" demonstrative adjectives, Spanish throws in a third category that doesn't exist in English:

Aquel, Aquellos, Aquella, and Aquellas

 

So what's going on here? If an object is close enough to touch or right in front of you, use the first line from the chart above: este, or esta (for more than one object, estos or estas). If the object is a little farther away from you, use the second line: ese or esa (plural: esos or esas). And if the object is not in your general vicinity, use the last line: aquel or aquella (plural: aquellos or aquellas).

Please note that once again the masculine singular demonstrative adjective doesn't follow the normal pattern. It's aquel, not aquello.

Imagine that you're in the store again. You want to know the prices of a series of watches. The first watch is lying on the counter in front of you. The second is in the display case a few feet to one side. And the third watch is hanging on the wall behind the salesperson. Your questions might sound something like this:

¿Cuánto cuesta este reloj? How much does this watch cost?

¿Y cuánto cuesta ese reloj? And how much does that watch cost?

¿Y cuánto cuesta aquel reloj? And how much does that watch (over there) cost?

Or if instead of watches you were asking about bouquets of flowers:

¿Cuánto cuestan estas flores? How much do these flowers cost?

¿Y cuánto cuestan esas flores? And how much do those flowers cost?

¿Y cuánto cuestan aquellas flores? And how much do those flowers (over there) cost?

Notice that both ese and aquel (or esa and aqella) translate to "that" in English. And both esos and aquellos (or esas and aquellas) translate to "those." It can be helpful to add the words "over there" when dealing with forms of aquel.

Determining when you should use a form of eso versus when you should use a form of aquel is not an exact science. One way that might make it clearer is to think of it this way: If the object you're discussing is closer to you than it is to the person you're talking to, use a form of este. If the object is closer to the person you're talking to, use a form of ese. And if the object isn't near either of you, use a form of aquel.

Please watch the following video.

 

Please watch this video below.

Review Activities

Review with the following set of activities.

Self-Assessment

Click here to download the Adjetivos Demostrativos handout. Links to an external site. Fill in the answers for numbers 1-12 and print this sheet to use as an additional study guide for demonstrative adjectives.

 

RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.