By Thay Giao Thao_Teacher of English

DEMONSTRATIVES
THIS THESE; THAT THOSE
We use demonstratives to point to something in the situation. This and
these refer to something near the speaker. That and those refer to
things further away. This and that are singular. These and those are
plural.
-

This color is nice, but I like that color better.

These books are mine; those pens are yours.

We can also use this and that with uncountable nouns.

-

This coffee is better than that coffee.

We can leave out the noun when the meaning is clear from the context.
-

This house is bigger than that is.

We use this/these for present/future situations

-

Im going to see the dentist this evening.

These days, the weather in Vietnam is horrible.

We use that/those for past situations.

-

Do you remember the day we met. That day was the one of the best
days in my life.

We can use that/those to talk about something already seen or mentioned

but no longer present in the situation.
-

That dress Tanya was wearing looked very smart.

We are going to get marriage. Thats marvelous.

We use this to talk about something going to happen.

-

We will win this match.

We use this to introduce someone or identify ourselves on the phone.

-

This is my friend James.

This is Mr. Xoa speaking.

We use that on speaking on the phone to ask who the other is.
-

Hello? This is Mr. Xoa. Whos that?

We can use that/those in this pattern.

High Quality English Teaching

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By Thay Giao Thao_Teacher of English

-

There is a big difference in the fate between beautiful girls and

those who are not. (those = girls who are not)
The crime rate in this city is more serious than that in mine. (that =
the crime rate)

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