A demonstrative adjective is a word that points to a specific noun. English uses this, that, these, and those to point to particular people or things.
French uses demonstrative adjectives before nouns for the same purpose. They appear in time expressions such as this morning and this week. Their form changes to agree with the noun.
Demonstrative adjective forms
French demonstrative adjectives have four forms. The form depends on the gender and number of the noun:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ce | this / that |
| cet | this / that |
| cette | this / that |
| ces | these / those |
Ce and cet are masculine singular, cette is feminine singular, and ces is plural. Before a vowel or a mute h, the masculine singular form is cet.
Agreement with the noun
A demonstrative adjective agrees with a noun in gender and number. For regular agreement patterns, see Adjective agreement:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ce livre | this book / that book |
| ce garçon | this boy / that boy |
| cette maison | this house / that house |
| cette fille | this girl / that girl |
| ces livres | these books / those books |
| ces voitures | these cars / those cars |
The demonstrative changes with the noun, while the English translation may be this, that, these, or those.
People or objects that are near and far
The same demonstrative adjective can refer to a person or object that is nearby or farther away. Context determines whether English uses this or that:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Ce livre est intéressant. | This book is interesting. |
| Cet homme est mon professeur. | This man is my teacher. |
| Cette église est vieille. | This church is old. |
| Cette voiture est rouge. | This car is red. |
| Ces statues sont anciennes. | These statues are old. |
The demonstrative adjective alone does not mark the distance. Add là-bas when the person or object is farther away:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Ce magasin, là-bas, est fermé. | That shop over there is closed. |
Here, là-bas makes the distance explicit.
-ci and -là for objects that are near and far
Add -ci or -là after the noun when you need to distinguish a person or object is closer than one that is farther away.
The demonstrative adjective still agrees with the noun:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ce livre-ci | this book |
| ce livre-là | that book |
| cette maison-ci | this house |
| cette maison-là | that house |
| ces chaussures-ci | these shoes |
| ces chaussures-là | those shoes |
The ending -ci marks the nearer person or object, while -là marks the farther one.
Demonstrative adjectives in time expressions
Demonstrative adjectives also appear with time expressions such as this morning, this week, and this summer. The form agrees with the noun:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ce matin | this morning |
| cette semaine | this week |
| cet été | this summer |
The demonstrative identifies the relevant period of time without changing the usual agreement pattern.
Weeks, months, and other specific periods
Add -ci after the noun for a period that includes the present:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ces jours-ci | these days |
| ce mois-ci | this month |
Add -là for a particular day or month already identified in the context:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ce jour-là | that day |
| ce mois-là | that month |
The endings distinguish the current period from another specific period.
The liaison after ces
Before a vowel or a mute h, the final s in ces forms a liaison and sounds like a z:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ces amis | these friends / those friends |
| ces étudiants | these students / those students |
An aspirated h blocks the liaison:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ces héros | these heroes / those heroes |
The spelling of ces stays the same in both cases. Only the pronunciation changes.
Cet before a vowel or mute h
Masculine singular nouns that begin with a vowel or a mute h follow this pattern:
cet + vowel or mute h
Use cet instead of ce before these nouns:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| cet ami | this friend / that friend |
| cet appartement | this apartment / that apartment |
| cet homme | this man / that man |
| cet hôtel | this hotel / that hotel |
A mute h is treated like a vowel. Feminine cette does not change before a vowel or a mute h.
Possessive adjectives make a similar change before a vowel or silent h. See Possessive adjectives.
An aspirated h acts like a consonant, so a masculine noun with an aspirated h keeps ce:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| ce héros | this hero / that hero |
The distinction between mute and aspirated h therefore affects both the choice between ce and cet and whether liaison occurs.
From learning to practice
When someone points to an item or a place, listen for the noun after ce, cet, cette, or ces. Listen for -ci, -là, or là-bas when that person distinguishes a nearer item from a farther one.