Japanese Demonstratives: これ, それ, あれ, どれ – この, その, あの, どの – ここ, そこ, あそこ, どこ

　When you start learning Japanese, one of the first things you’ll notice is how often people point at things! To do this, Japanese uses demonstratives – words like this, that, which, here, there. These words are very common and super useful, so let’s learn them step by step.

1. これ / それ / あれ / どれ

• These are pronouns and used to point at something.

• They mean “this / that / that over there / which”.

• You use them alone, without a noun after them.

Word	Meaning	Usage
これ (kore)	this	near the speaker (me)
それ (sore)	that	near the listener (you)
あれ (are)	that (over there)	away from both
どれ (dore)	which	question word

Examples:

1. これは ペンです。(kore wa pen desu) – This is a pen.

2. それは じしょですか。(sore wa jisho desu ka) – Is that a dictionary?

3. あれは たけしさんです。(are wa Takeshi-san desu) – That (over there) is Takeshi.

4. どれですか。(dore desu ka) – Which one is it? (That you are talking about??)

5. どれが たけしさんのほんですか。 (dore ga takeshi-san no hon desuka) - Which one is Takeshi's book?

⚠️ As you see above, those pointing words stand alone as a subject/topic without any noun after them. ⚠️ If you put a question word such as なに and どれ in the subject place, you must use particle が instead of は.

2. この / その / あの / どの

• These are adjectives.

• Thus, they must be followed by a noun.

• They mean “this [noun], that [noun], that [noun] over there, which [noun]”.

Word	Meaning
この (kono)	this [noun]
その (sono)	that [noun]
あの (ano)	that [noun] over there
どの (dono)	which [noun]

Examples:

1. このほんは たかいです。(kono hon wa takai desu) – This book is expensive.

2. そのとけいは いくらですか。(sono tokei wa ikura desu ka) – How much is that watch?

3. あのひとは せんせいです。(ano hito wa sensei desu) – That person over there is a teacher.

4. どのかばんですか。(dono kaban desu ka) – Which bag is it?

5. どのかばんが はなこさんのかばんですか。 (dono kaban ga hanako-san no kaban desuka) - Which bag is Hanako's bag?

⚠️ As you see above, unlike the れ-series (これ/それ/あれ/どれ), this の-series (この/その/あの/どの) are always used with a noun right after them. In other words, they don't stand alone as they are adjectives.

⚠️ Like the れ-series, if you put the question phrase "どの + noun" in the subject position, you must use particle が instead of は.

3. ここ / そこ / あそこ / どこ

• These words talk about places.

• They mean “here, there, over there, where”.

Word	Meaning	Usage
ここ (koko)	here	near the speaker
そこ (soko)	there	near the listener
あそこ (asoko)	over there	away from both
どこ (doko)	where	question word

Examples:

1. トイレは ここです。(toire wa koko desu) – The bathroom is here.

2. ぎんこうは そこです。(ginkou wa soko desu) – The bank is there.

3. レストランは あそこです。(resutoran wa asoko desu) – The restaurant is over there.

4. だいがくは どこですか。(daigaku wa doko desu ka) – Where is the university?

   

4. Quick Summary Table

Type	Near me	Near you	Away from both	Question
Pronoun	これ	それ	あれ	どれ
+ Noun	このN	そのN	あのN	どのN
Place	ここ	そこ	あそこ	どこ

5. Practice

　Now that we went over the basic usages of those Japanese demonstratives, let's work on some practices below! The answers are shown below. A. Fill in the blanks

✍️ Choose the correct word: これ / それ / あれ / どれ / この / その / あの / どの / ここ / そこ / あそこ / どこ.

1. ______は わたしの かばんです。 (This is my bag.)

2. ______ほんは いくらですか。 (How much is this book?)

3. ぎんこうは ______です。 (The bank is there (near the listener).)

4. ______ひとは がくせいです。 (That person over there is a student.)

5. ______ペンは たかいです。 (This pen is expensive.)

6. いぬは ______ですか。 (Where is the dog?)

7. わたしの とけいは ______です。 (That is my watch. (near the listener))

8. いま、せんせいは ______です。 (The teacher is over there.)
   

B. Choose the best answer

✍️ Choose the correct word.

1. (これ / それ / あれ) は わたしの くるまです。 (That car over there is mine.)

2. (この / その / あの) じしょは たかいです。 (That dictionary over there is expensive.)

3. とけいは (ここ / そこ / あそこ) です。 (The watch is there, near you.)

4. せんせいは (どこ / どれ / どの) ですか。 (Where is the teacher?)
   

C. Matching Practice

✍️ Match the Japanese sentence with the correct English translation.

1. これは ほんです。

2. あのひとは せんせいです。

3. ここは トイレです。

4. どのかばんですか。
   

a. That person over there is a teacher. b. This is a book. c. Which bag is it? d. This place is the restroom.

D. Translate into Japanese

✍️ Use the correct demonstrative word.

1. This is a pen. → ______________________

2. That (near you) is my bag. → ______________________

3. That person over there is a student. → ______________________

4. Where is the restaurant? → ______________________

5. Which book is it? → ______________________
   

E. Challenge Sentences (apply the pattern)

🗣️ Translate and say aloud:

1. This bag is cheap.

2. That watch (near you) is expensive.

3. That person over there is Takeshi.

4. The university is over there.

5. Where is the bank?

   
   

📃Answers

A: 1. これ　2. この　3. そこ　4. あの　5. この　6. どこ　7. それ　8. あそこ

B: 1. あれ　2. あの　3. そこ　4. どこ C:

1 . b　2. a　3. d　4. c

D:

1.これは ペンです。　　2. それは わたしのかばんです。　　3. あのひとは がくせいです。 4. レストランはどこですか。　　5. どのほんですか。

E:

1. このかばんは やすいです。　　　2. そのとけいは たかいです。

3. あのひとは たけしさんです。　　　4. だいがくは あそこです。

5. ぎんこうは どこですか。

　How was your score? Now that you learned the use of demonstratives, you can tell what you are pointing at or talking about even if you don't know the name of items. Hope this article helps you understand how the demonstratives are used in Japanese. おつかれさまでした！(Well done!)

6. Vocabulary List (from this article)

Japanese	Reading	English Meaning
ペン	pen	pen
じしょ	jisho	dictionary
ほん	hon	book
たけしさん	Takeshi-san	Mr. Takeshi
とけい	tokei	watch, clock
ひと	hito	person
せんせい	sensei	teacher
かばん	kaban	bag
トイレ	toire	toilet, bathroom
ぎんこう	ginkou	bank
レストラン	resutoran	restaurant
だいがく	daigaku	university
たかい	takai	expensive
いくら	ikura	how much
わたしの	watashi no	my