Demonstrative Pronouns

demonstrate (verb): to show; to indicate; to point to

A demonstrative pronoun represents a thing or things:

near in distance or time (this, these)

far in distance or time (that, those)

near far

singular this that

plural these those

Here are some examples with demonstrative pronouns, followed by an illustration:

This tastes good.

Have you seen this?
These are bad times.
Do you like these?

That is beautiful.
Look at that!
Those were the days!
Can you see those?

This is heavier than that.

These are bigger than those.

Do not confuse demonstrative pronouns with demonstrative adjectives. They are identical, but a demonstrative
pronoun stands alone, while a demonstrative adjective qualifies a noun.

That smells. (demonstrative pronoun)

That book is good. (demonstrative adjective + noun)

Normally we use demonstrative pronouns for things only. But we can use them for people when the person is
identified. Look at these examples:

This is Josef speaking. Is that Mary?

That sounds like John.
 When used to represent a thing or things, demonstrative pronouns can be either near or far in
distance or time:

Near in time or distance: this, these

Far in time or distance: that, those
Because there are only a few demonstrative pronouns in the English language, there are just
three simple rules for using them correctly. Remember them and you will have no difficulty using
these surprisingly interesting parts of speech.

Demonstrative pronouns always identify nouns, whether those nouns are named specifically or
not. For example: I cant believe this. We have no idea what this is, but its definitely
something the writer cannot believe. It exists, even though we dont know what it is.
Demonstrative pronouns are usually used to describe animals, places, or things, however they
can be used to describe people when the person is identified, i.e., This sounds like Mary singing.
Do not confuse demonstrative adjectives with demonstrative pronouns. The words are identical,
but demonstrative adjectives qualify nouns, whereas demonstrative pronouns stand alone.
Demonstrative pronouns can be used in place of a noun, so long as the noun being replaced can
be understood from the pronouns context. Although this concept might seem a bit confusing at
first, the following examples of demonstrative pronouns will add clarity.

Demonstrative Pronouns Examples

In the following examples, demonstrative pronouns have been italicized for ease of identification.

This was my mothers ring.

That looks like the car I used to drive.

These are nice shoes, but they look uncomfortable.

Those look like riper than the apples on my tree.

Such was her command over the English language.

None of these answers are correct.

Neither of the horses can be ridden.

Demonstrative Pronouns Exercises
The following exercises will help you gain greater understanding about how demonstrative
pronouns work. Choose the best answer to complete each sentence.

1. ____________ was such an interesting experience.

A. That
B. These
C. Those
D. Such
2. Are ___________ your shoes?
A. That
B. Them
C. Those
D. This
3. Youll have to get your own pen. ______________ is mine.
A. That
B. Those
C. Such
D. This
4. There is no end to ___________.
A. Such
B. Those
C. This
D. None
5. Because of their bad behavior, ____________ of the children were given allowances.
A. None
B. That
C. Those
D. Them
6. ____________ of them had seen it before.
A. Those
B. Neither
C. Such
D. This
7. Is ____________ yours?
A. This
B. Those
C. These
D. Such
8. Everyone ate early. When we arrived, ____________ was left.
A. That
B. Such
C. None
D. Neither
9. Please give me one of ____________.
A. That
B. Those
C. This
D. Such
10. ____________ are nice-looking.
A. This
B. That
C. These
D. Such
Answers

5. A That was such an interesting experience.

6. C Are those your shoes?
7. D Youll have to get your own pen. This is mine.
8. C There is no end to this.
9. A Because of their bad behavior, none of the children were given allowances.
10. A Neither of them had seen it before.
11. A Is that yours?
12. C Everyone ate early. When we arrived, none was left.
13. B Please give me one of those.
14. C These are nice-looking.
Relative or conjunctive pronouns

Relative pronoun (kata ganti penghubung) bukan saja menunjuk kepada suatu kata benda yg
mendahului,tetapi juga menghubungkan dua buah kalimat menjadi sebuah kalimat.Oleh karena itu ,kata ganti
penghubung boleh juga disebut Conjunctive Pronoun.
Dalam bahasa Indonesia ,dua buah kalimat dapat digabungkan menjadi sebuah kalimat,dengan
memakai yang, kalau pokok kalimat yg pertama dan pokok kalimat yg kedua terdiri atas orang yg
sama atau benda yg sama.
contoh:

1. Orang itu adik saya.

2. Orang itu datang dari bekasi.
Kedua kalimat itu kalau digabungkan menjadi: Orang yang datang dari bekasi itu adalah adik saya.

Dalam bahasa inggris : The man who comes from Bekasi is my brother.

Relative pronouns

Relative pronouns are different from conjunctions. Relative pronouns are important connecting devices. They
not only connect two clauses but also act as the subject or object of the verb in the relative clause. This is the
main difference between conjunctions and relative pronouns. Conjunctions merely connect two clauses. They do
not serve any other purpose.

Study the sentences given below.

This is the letter. My mother sent me this letter.

We can connect these two clauses.

This is the letter that my mother sent me.

Here the relative pronoun that replaces the phrase this letter and acts as the object of the verb sent. It is
easy to decide whether a relative pronoun is the subject or the object. When it is the object it will be
immediately followed by another noun which acts as the subject. In this case, the relative pronoun that is
followed by the noun my mother which acts as the subject.

Interrogative Pronouns
What Is an Interrogative Pronoun?
An interrogative pronoun is a pronoun which is used to make asking questions easy. There are
just five interrogative pronouns. Each one is used to ask a very specific question or indirect
question. Some, such as who and whom, refer only to people. Others can be used to refer to
objects or people. Once you are familiar with interrogative pronouns, youll find that its very easy
to use them in a variety of situations.
 Interrogative pronouns can also be used as relative pronouns, which may be found in questions
or indirect questions. Youll know for certain that a pronoun is classified as an interrogative when
its used in an inquiring way, because interrogative pronouns are found only in question and
indirect questions.

The five interrogative pronouns are what, which, who, whom, and whose.

What Used to ask questions about people or objects. Examples:

o What do you want for dinner?
o I wonder what were doing tomorrow.
o What is your friends name?
o What time are we supposed to be there?
Which Used to ask questions about people or objects. Examples:
o Which color do you prefer?
o Which of these ladies is your mother?
o She asked which train to take.
o Which seat would you like?
Who Used to ask questions about people. Examples:
o Who is that?
o Who was driving the car?
o Im wondering who will be at the party.
o Who is going to take out the trash?
Whom This interrogative pronoun is rarely seen these days, but when it shows up, it is used to ask
questions about people. Examples:
o Whom did you speak to?
o Whom do you prefer to vote for?
o You should ask whom to call.
o Whom do you live with?
Whose Used to ask questions about people or objects, always related to possession. Examples:
o Whose sweater is this?
o Whose parents are those?
o I wonder whose dog knocked our garbage can over.
o Whose phone is that?
In some cases, interrogative pronouns take on the suffix ever. A few can also take on the old-
fashioned suffix soever, which is rarely seen in writing these days. For example:

Whatever
Whatsoever
Whichever
Whoever
Whosoever
Whomever
 Whomsoever
Whosever
Interrogative pronouns are very easy to remember and use. Memorize them to make things even
simpler.

Examples of Interrogative Pronouns

Sentences containing interrogative pronouns are always questions, so they always end with
a question mark. In the following examples, interrogative pronouns have been italicized for ease
of identification.

1. What do you want for your birthday?

2. Which shirt do you think looks better on me?
3. Who do you think will win the playoff game?
4. To whom are you speaking?
5. Whose socks are those?

Interrogative Pronouns Exercises

Fill in the blanks with an interrogative pronoun.

1. __________ threw the football?

A. who

B. what

C. which

D. whose

2. ____________ would you prefer, coffee or tea?

A. who

B. whom

C. which

D. whose

3. ______________ time do we need to be at the airport?

A. which

B. what

C. whose

D. whom

4. _____________ car is that?

A. whom
 B. whose

C. what

D. who

5. ____________ is your sisters name?

A. who

B. whom

C. what

D. whose

6. _____________ did you tell?

A. whom

B. what

C. whose

D. which

7. _____________ of these books have you read?

A. what

B. whom

C. whose

D. which

8. ______________ wants ice cream?

A. what

B. whom

C. who

D. whose

Answer Key:

1. A Who threw the football?

2. C Which would you prefer, coffee or tea?

3. B What time do we need to be at the airport?

4. B Whose car is that?

5. C What is your sisters name?

6. A Whom did you tell?

7. D Which of these books have you read?

8. C Who wants ice cream?

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