これ/それ/あれ

This/that/that Over There

Level 1Sounds Like kore/sore/are

これ: This (near me)
それ: That (near you)
あれ: That over there (far from both)
どれ: Which one (question word)

How It Works

The Japanese demonstrative system is based on the physical and psychological distance between the speaker and the listener. There are two main ways to look at this:

1. The Separate Model (Speaker vs. Listener)
Used when the speaker and listener are facing each other or in different spots.

  • これ: Things in the speaker's space.
  • それ: Things in the listener's space. Psychologically, it refers to information the speaker treats as being in the listener's domain (e.g., something the listener just mentioned).
  • あれ: Things far from both. Psychologically, it refers to information that both parties share through mutual personal experience.

2. The Unified Model (Standing Together)
Used when the speaker and listener are side-by-side or facing the same direction.

  • これ: Things close to both people.
  • それ: Things slightly removed from both people.
  • あれ: Things far away from both people.

Grammar Note: These are pronouns and stand alone. You cannot put a noun directly after them (e.g., do not say これ本). To say "this book," use この instead.

Examples (4)

  1. これはペンです。

    This is a pen.

    Word by Word: This (topic) pen is.

    The speaker is holding the pen or it is right in front of them.

  2. それは何ですか。

    What is that?

    Word by Word: That (topic) what is (question)?

    The speaker is asking about an object near the listener. Note the use of 何（なに）.

  3. あれは私の家です。

    That over there is my house.

    Word by Word: That over there (topic) my house is.

    The house is at a distance from both the speaker and the listener.

  4. これはいくらですか。

    How much is this?

    Word by Word: This (topic) how much is (question)?

    A common phrase used when shopping for an item you are holding or touching.

Common Mistakes

  • Using these pronouns to refer to people.

    あれは私の先生です。
    あの人は私の先生です。

    Using これ/それ/あれ for people is considered rude as it treats them like objects. Use あの人（あのひと） or the polite あちら instead.

  • Placing a noun directly after the pronoun.

    これ本は面白いです。
    この本は面白いです。

    これ/それ/あれ are pronouns and cannot modify nouns directly. To describe a specific noun, you must use the 'no' versions: この/その/あの.

How It Connects

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

これ/それ/あれLevel 1This/that/that Over There

Learn This First

これ, それ, and あれ are foundational demonstrative pronouns. To use them, you primarily need to be able to read hiragana and understand the basic structure of a Japanese sentence where these words function as the topic or subject.

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