Demonstratives / これ それ あれ どれ

「これ」「それ」「あれ」 — if you’ve watched any anime, you’ve heard these little words a hundred times. They’re Japanese’s version of “this,” “that,” and “that over there,” and which one you pick depends on who is closest to the thing. Master this trio (plus どれ for “which”) and pointing things out in Japanese becomes effortless.

Types and roles of demonstratives

Demonstratives represent things, places, directions, etc.
Which one you use depends on whether the thing you want to indicate is near the speaker, near the listener, or far from both.
They have pronoun usages, adnominal adjective usages, and adverbial usages.

Notice the pattern? Near me = こ (これ, ここ, この…), near you = そ (それ, そこ, その…), far from both = あ (あれ, あそこ, あの…), and a question = ど (どれ, どこ, どの…). Learn the こ・そ・あ・ど rule once and every demonstrative falls into place! ✨

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Pronoun usages

Examples

e.g. それは何なんですか？

What is it?

In this case “it” indicates the thing near the listener

e.g. 駅えきはこっちです。

The station is in this direction.

In this case “this direction” indicates the direction near the speaker side

駅えき [noun] station

e.g. あいつは天才てんさいだ。

That guy is a genius.

In this case “that guy” indicates the person who is far from speaker and listener

天才てんさい [noun] genius

e.g. どちらになさいますか？

Which would you like?

なさる+ます+か [verb+auxiliary verb+particle] do you? would you like?

Adnominal adjective usages

Examples

e.g. このペンを買かいます。

I’ll buy this pen.

In this case, the speaker is closer to the pen than anyone else.

ペン [noun] pen
買かう [verb] buy

e.g. そんな感かんじです。 (それは is omitted at the beginning of sentence)

It is like that.

In this case, it feels like the speaker agreed with the listener’s opinion.

感かんじ [noun] feeling, impression

e.g. その話はなしは聞きいたことがあります。

I’ve heard that story.

In this case, “that story” refers to the story that the listener told just before.

話はなし [noun] story, tale, topic, talk, speech
こと+が+ある+ます [noun+particle+verb+auxiliary verb] I have V(p.p.)

e.g. あの人ひとは誰だれですか？

Who is that person?

In this case, “that person” is far from speaker and listener.

人ひと [noun] person

e.g. どんな音楽おんがくが好すきですか？

What kind of music do you like?

音楽おんがく [noun] music
好すき [Na-adjective] like, preferred, favorite

Adverbial usages

Examples

はい、そうです。

Yes, it is (like that you said).

ああなりたくない。

I don’t want to be like that.

Practice

Translate the following sentences into English, paying attention to the demonstratives.

Summary

Japanese demonstratives all follow the same こ・そ・あ・ど pattern, and they show up in three roles:

• Pronouns — stand in for a thing, place, or person (これ, そこ, あいつ, どれ …).
• Adnominal adjectives — come before a noun to point it out (この本, そんな話, あの人, どんな …).
• Adverbs — describe how something is or happens (こう, そう, ああ, どう).

Remember the rule of distance: こ = near me, そ = near you, あ = far from both, ど = the question word. Once that clicks, every demonstrative makes sense.

You’ll hear こそあど words constantly in anime and games — now you know exactly what they’re pointing at. Try catching a few next time you watch! 👀