kēia kēnā kēlā

This and That

Level 1

Three words for this and that: kēia is near me, kēnā is near you, and kēlā is far from both of us.

How It Works

English has two choices, “this” and “that”. Hawaiian has three, based on where the thing is:

WordWhereExample
kēianear mekēia hale
kēnānear youkēnā hale
kēlāfar from bothkēlā hale

These words take the place of ka or ke, so you do not add an article: kēia puke “this book”. For more than one, add mau: kēia mau puke “these books”. The words can also stand alone: Maikaʻi kēia “This is good”.

Examples (5)

  1. kēia puke

    this book (near me)

    Kēia replaces ka.

  2. kēnā pāpale

    that hat (near you)

    Kēnā points near the listener.

  3. kēlā hale

    that house (far from both)

    Kēlā points far from both of you.

  4. kēia mau puke

    these books

    Mau makes it plural.

  5. Maikaʻi kēia kope.

    This coffee is good.

    The word comes before the noun inside the sentence.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding ka before kēia.

    ka kēia puke
    kēia puke

    Kēia stands where the article would be, and a noun takes one such word, as the Reference Grammar shows for ka and koʻu. So it does not take ka.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

kēia kēnā kēlāLevel 1This and That

Learn This First

These words for “this” and “that” take the place of ka and ke before a noun.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

kēiakēnākēlā