Les pronoms démonstratifs
celui, celle, ceux, celles — 'this one', 'that one', 'the one that…'
Demonstrative pronouns replace a noun you've already mentioned, pointing to a specific one: 'this one', 'that one', 'the ones that…'. They agree in gender and number with the noun they replace, and they're almost always followed by -ci/-là, de, or a relative pronoun (qui/que).
The four forms
Like adjectives, demonstrative pronouns match the gender and number of the noun they replace.
| Masculine | Feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | celui | celle |
| Plural | ceux | celles |
Celui/celle + -ci / -là (this one / that one)
Add -ci (this one, closer) or -là (that one, farther) to point at a specific item. In practice, -là is much more common than -ci in modern spoken French.
- Tu veux quel gâteau ? — Celui-ci. — Which cake do you want? — This one.
- Quelle robe préfères-tu ? — Celle-là. — Which dress do you prefer? — That one.
- Quels livres sont à toi ? — Ceux-là. — Which books are yours? — Those ones.
Celui/celle + de (the one belonging to)
Use 'de' to show possession or origin — 'the one from…', 'the one of…'.
- Mon vélo est cassé, je prends celui de Thomas. — My bike is broken, I'll take Thomas's.
- Ta chambre est plus grande que celle de ta sœur. — Your room is bigger than your sister's.
Celui/celle + qui/que (the one who/that)
Combine with a relative pronoun to describe WHICH one you mean.
- Celui qui arrive en premier gagne. — The one who arrives first wins.
- La robe que je préfère, c'est celle que tu portais hier. — The dress I prefer is the one you wore yesterday.
- Ceux qui veulent venir sont les bienvenus. — Those who want to come are welcome.
« Tu veux quelle tarte ? — ___, avec les fraises. »
Mon téléphone est vieux, je vais prendre ___ de mon frère.
___ qui veulent rester peuvent rester. (those who — masculine plural)
« Les chaussures que je préfère, ce sont ___ que tu as achetées hier. »
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