Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are words that point out specific people, things, or places. These are the demonstrative pronouns in English- this, these,  that,  and those. They are used to identify a particular noun that is being referred to. In this blog post, we will discuss what is a demonstrative pronoun, the uses of demonstrative pronouns and provide some demonstrative pronouns examples of how they can be used in sentences. We will also take a look at what is a demonstrative pronoun and how they differ from other types of pronouns. Let’s get started!

What is a demonstrative point?

A pronoun is a word that substitutes for a noun or proper name.  There are different types of pronouns, including demonstrative pronouns. Demonstrative pronouns point out specific people or things. They include the words “this,” “that,” “these,” and “those.”

For example, the sentence “Give me that book” uses the demonstrative pronoun “that” to point out a specific book.

Another example for  demonstrative pronouns is “I want these cookies.” In this sentence, the demonstrative pronoun “these” points out a specific type of cookie.

How many demonstrative pronouns are there?

There are four demonstrative pronouns. They are this, these, that, and those.

This and that are used to point out singular nouns. These and those are used to point out plural nouns.

Types of demonstrative pronouns

There are two types of demonstrative pronouns: Singular demonstrative pronouns and Plural demonstrative pronouns. Let’s look into them with demonstrative pronouns examples.

Singular demonstrative pronouns:  This, that. They are used to refer to distinct, single or singular nouns.

Example: That is a book. This is a pen

Plural demonstrative pronouns: These, those. They are utilised to direct plural nouns.

Example: These are pens. Those are books.

Demonstrative pronoun v/s Demonstrative adjectives:

Demonstrative adjectives are used to modify nouns, while demonstrative pronouns are used to replace nouns. For example, in the sentence “This is my book,” “This” is a demonstrative pronoun and “my” is a demonstrative adjective.

When to use demonstrative pronouns?

Here we have listed when to use which pronoun

This: This demonstrative pronoun is used when pointing to something that is close in distance or time.

That: Used when pointing to something that is further away from the speaker, or after it has been mentioned.

These: These demonstrative pronouns are used when pointing to a group of things that are close in either distance or time.

Those: Used to point at something that is further away from the speaker or after it has been mentioned.

Now let’s look at some examples:

This is my house. (pointing to a nearby house)

That is your car. (pointing to a car that’s a few blocks away)

These are my kids. (pointing to a group of nearby children)

Those are your parents. (pointing to a group of people who are further away)

Rules to use demonstrative pronouns:

When choosing a demonstrative pronoun, you must first consider whether you are referring to something near or far in space or time. The four demonstrative pronouns are this, that, these, and those.

These and this refer to things near in space or time, while those and that refer to things far away in space or time.

Here are some examples:

This pie is delicious! (near)

That movie was so scary! (far)

These cookies look delicious! (near)

Those cookies look delicious! (far)

Demonstrative pronouns Exercises:

Now that you know all about demonstrative pronouns, it’s time to put your knowledge to the test!

Complete the following exercises:

– Pick out the demonstrative pronoun in each sentence.

The big dog barked at the delivery man.

This book is really interesting.

That cat is so cute.

Conclusion

A pronoun is a word that substitutes for a noun or proper name.  There are different types of pronouns, including demonstrative pronouns. Demonstrative pronouns point out specific people or things. They include the words “this,” “that,” “these,” and “those.” They are different from demonstrative adjectives. One should note the grammatical contexts carefully in order toa void any error while using them in spoken or written communication.