Demonstratives: 这, 那, and Pointing Things Out

When you want to point at something and say "this" or "that," Chinese gives you two words: 这 zhè and 那 nà. They're a matched pair, and once you learn one, the other comes free, because they work exactly the same way.

The basic pair

• 这 zhè = this (near you)
• 那 nà = that (away from you)

The split is about distance. 这 is for what's close, 那 is for what's farther off. Same idea as English.

• 这是我的书。Zhè shì wǒ de shū. (This is my book.)
• 那是他的车。Nà shì tā de chē. (That is his car.)

Add a measure word for "this/that + noun"

When you want to say "this book" or "that person," you usually can't just put 这 right in front of the noun. You need a measure word in between:

这/那 + measure word + noun

The most common measure word is 个 ge, which works for people and lots of general things:

• 这个人 zhège rén (this person)
• 那个学生 nàge xuésheng (that student)
• 这个问题 zhège wèntí (this question)

Other nouns take their own measure words. Books use 本 běn, flat things use 张 zhāng:

• 这本书 zhè běn shū (this book)
• 那张桌子 nà zhāng zhuōzi (that table)

If you don't know the right measure word yet, 个 will usually get you understood. But each noun does have its proper one, and you'll pick those up over time.

Add a number too

You can slot a number in as well, right before the measure word:

这/那 + number + measure word + noun

• 这三本书 zhè sān běn shū (these three books)
• 那两个人 nà liǎng ge rén (those two people)

When the number is one, people often drop it, so 这个人 already feels like "this one person."

Pointing at places: 这儿/这里 and 那儿/那里

To say "here" and "there," you add a place word:

• 这儿 zhèr or 这里 zhèlǐ = here
• 那儿 nàr or 那里 nàlǐ = there

Both versions mean the same thing. 这儿/那儿 are more common in the north and in speech, while 这里/那里 are used everywhere. Pick whichever you like.

• 我在这儿。Wǒ zài zhèr. (I'm here.)
• 他住在那里。Tā zhù zài nàlǐ. (He lives there.)

哪: the question version

There's a close cousin worth meeting now: 哪 nǎ, which means "which." It looks almost like 那, so be careful. 那 (nà, falling tone) is "that," and 哪 (nǎ, dipping tone) is "which."

It works just like 这 and 那, with a measure word:

• 哪个人？Nǎge rén? (Which person?)
• 你要哪本书？Nǐ yào nǎ běn shū? (Which book do you want?)

And the place version is 哪儿 nǎr or 哪里 nǎlǐ, meaning "where":

• 你在哪儿？Nǐ zài nǎr? (Where are you?)

A note on sounds

In casual speech, 这个 often sounds like "zhèige" and 那个 like "nèige." Don't worry, it's the same word, just a relaxed pronunciation. You'll hear it constantly. Both the textbook "zhège" and the spoken "zhèige" are correct.

Quick recap

这 is "this," 那 is "that," and the dividing line is distance: near versus far. To attach them to a noun, drop a measure word in between, usually 个 if you're unsure. Add 儿 or 里 to talk about places. And keep 哪 (which/where) separate from 那 (that), since they look alike but do different jobs. Learn this little group together and you can point at anything around you.