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LESSON 15Demonstrative Pronouns
Lesson objective
In this lesson, you will learn how to say this, that, these, and those.
Demonstrative adjectives and pronouns
Words such as this, that, these and those can be used in two ways.
Before a noun
When the word comes before a noun, it is a demonstrative adjective — for example: this car, that book, these towels, those flowers.
Without a noun
When the word is used alone, it is a demonstrative pronoun — for example: This is John’s. I want that. I like these.
It is not necessary to remember the grammar names immediately — the important thing is to notice whether the word appears before a noun or is used alone.
Demonstrative pronouns in Darija
| English | Darija |
|---|---|
| This — masculine | hada |
| This — feminine | hadi |
| These — plural | hadu |
| That — masculine | hadak |
| That — feminine | hadik |
| Those — plural | haduk |
These forms can appear at the beginning, middle, or end of a sentence, or in a question, and they can be used for objects and people.
Examples with objects
hada kursi. — This is a chair. (kursi is masculine, so hada is used)
hadi ṭbla. — This is a table. (ṭbla is feminine, so hadi is used)
Examples with people
hada Abdallah. — This is Abdallah. · hadi Aicha. — This is Aicha.
Asking about an object
| English | Darija |
|---|---|
| What is this? — masculine | šnu hada? / aš hada? |
| What is this? — feminine | šnu hadi? / aš hadi? |
| What is that? — masculine | šnu hadak? / aš hadak? |
Asking about a person
| English | Darija |
|---|---|
| Who is this? — masculine | škun hada? |
| Who is this? — feminine | škun hadi? |
| Who is that? — feminine | škun hadik? |
At the beginning, it may be difficult to know whether a noun is masculine or feminine — Moroccan speakers should usually understand you even when you make a gender mistake.
Sentence-building exercise
Create correct sentences by combining a demonstrative pronoun, a noun, and a matching adjective.
hada rajl mzyan. — This is a good man.
Demonstrative pronouns
- hada — this, masculine
- hadi — this, feminine
- hadu — these
- hadak — that, masculine
- hadik — that, feminine
- haduk — those
Nouns
- wld — boy (m.)
- bnt — girl (f.)
- qhwa — coffee (f.)
- wlad — boys (m. pl.)
- rajl — man (m.)
- ḍar — house (f.)
- 3yalat — women (f. pl.)
- mdina — city (f.)
- bnat — girls (f. pl.)
- blad — country (m.)
Adjectives: mzyan / mzyanin / mzyana / mzyanat (good), kbir / kbira / kbar (big), frнan / frнanin / frнana / frнanat (happy). The noun and adjective should agree in gender and number.
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