LinguaThe same three distances, now with a noun
この, その, あの and どの divide space exactly as the short forms do, but they cannot stand alone: a noun must follow immediately. これはほんです and このほんはあたらしいです are both correct; このはほんです is not a sentence. Think of the long forms as adjectives – they describe which one, and like every adjective in Japanese they come before the word they describe.
| Stands alone | Needs a noun | Example |
|---|---|---|
| これ | この | このほん |
| それ | その | そのみせ |
| あれ | あの | あのたてもの |
| どれ | どの | どのへや |
かた: the polite word for a person
ひと is the ordinary word for a person and かた is its polite twin, so あのかた is “that gentleman” or “that lady” where あのひと is simply “that person”. Use かた about customers, teachers and anyone you would not point at casually. The same care applies to the question: だれ is neutral and どなた is its polite form.
あのかたはにほんごのせんせいですThat person over there is a Japanese teacher.
そのいすはあかいですThat chair by you is red.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| この | this (before a noun) | このほんはわたしのです This book is mine. |
| その | that (near you, before a noun) | そのかたはどなたですか Who is that person by you? |
| あの | that (over there, before a noun) | あのまどはおおきいです That window over there is big. |
| どの | which (before a noun) | どのへやですか Which room is it? |
| たてもの | building | しろいたてもの a white building |
| みせ | shop | えきのまえのみせ the shop in front of the station |
| へや | room | しずかなへや a quiet room |
| かた | person (polite) | あのかたはせんせいです That gentleman is a teacher. |
| いす | chair | あかいいす a red chair |
| まど | window | まどのそとのやま the mountain outside the window |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- match the pairs: 1
- fill the gap: 2
- build the sentence: 2
- translate the sentence: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Which of these can be placed directly in front of a noun?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.