How to Say This, That, These & Those in Arabic (MSA vs. Levantine Dialect)
Knowing how to point things out is essential for communication. This guide will teach you how to use the Arabic demonstratives; words like 'this,' 'that,' 'these,' and 'those.' We'll cover the rules for Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and show you the simpler, everyday forms used in the Jordanian Palestinian dialect.
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Introduction: what demonstratives do
Demonstratives are words like this, that, these, those. They “point” to people or things in space, time or the discourse.
In Arabic they can act as:
Determiners before a noun: this book, those students.
Standalone words: this is a book; those are new.
Three ideas govern Arabic demonstratives:
Distance: near vs. far.
Agreement: masculine/feminine, singular/dual/plural (Modern Standard Arabic cares a lot about this).
Human vs. non-human: Modern Standard Arabic treats non-human plurals as singular feminine (explained below).
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Demonstratives in Standard Arabic (MSA/Classica)
1. Proximal (near)
Masculine singular: هذا = this (masc. sg.) Example: هذا الرجل طويل This man is tall.
Feminine singular: هذه = this (fem. sg.) Example: هذه البنتُ ذكية = This girl is smart.
Dual: used when exactly two of something
Masculine: هذانِ in nominative; هذينِ in accusative/genitive. Example (nom.): هذانِ الطالبانِ مجتهدانِ = These two male students are diligent.
Feminine: هاتانِ in nominative; هاتينِ in accusative/genitive. Example (nom.): هاتانِ الطالبتانِ مجتهدتانِ. = These two female students are diligent.
Plural, for humans: هؤلاءِ = these (people) Example: هؤلاءِ الرجال أقوياء = These men are strong.
Important rule for non-human plurals: In Modern Standard Arabic, non-human plurals behave like feminine singular for agreement. So you normally use هذه (fem. sg.) with non-human plurals:
هذه الكتب جديدة = These books are new.
Not: هؤلاء الكتب Reserve هؤلاء for human plurals.
2. Distal (far)
Masculine singular: ذلكَ = that (masc. sg.) Example: ذلكَ البيت واسع = That house is spacious.
Feminine singular: تلكَ = that (fem. sg.) Example: تلكَ السيارة سريعة = That car is fast.
Dual - rare but correct:
Masculine: ذانِكَ in nominative; ذَيْنِكَ in accusative/genitive.
Feminine: تانِكَ in nominative; تَيْنِكَ in accusative/genitive.
Plural typically for humans: أولئكَ = those (people) Example: أولئكَ الطلاب مجتهدون = Those students are diligent.
For non-human plurals at a distance, use تلك (fem. sg.), in keeping with the non-human rule:
تلكَ الأشجار عالية = Those trees are tall.
How to Use Demonstratives in a Sentence (MSA Rules)
Two common patterns with a singular noun:
هذا كتاب = This is a book. (Demonstrative + indefinite noun → an equational sentence, “this is…”.)
هذا الكتاب… = This book… (Demonstrative + definite noun with al- → a definite noun phrase, “this book”.)
Word order: In Standard Arabic, the demonstrative almost always precedes the noun it modifies: هذا الكتاب, تلك السيارة.
Adjectives: Adjectives follow the noun and agree with it:
هذا الكتاب الجديد مفيد = This new book is useful.
هؤلاء الطلاب الجدد من فلسطين = These new students are from Palestine
Case and inflection: Most demonstratives are indeclinable in case, but dual forms change (as shown above). If you are not focusing on full case endings, you can still use the same forms comfortably in modern formal writing and speech.
Demonstratives in Jordanian-Palestinian Dialect
Levantine Arabic (Including Jordanian Palestinian dialect) greatly simplifies the system. The forms and word order are very consistent in everyday speech; exact vowels/sounds vary by city/region. Below are very common shapes (you may hear small pronunciation differences).
Note before we start: In some Jordanian & Palestinian speech, you might here an emphatic sound of the daal د resulting into a ظ or ض sounds. This applies on all of the following demonstratives.
1. Proximal (near)
Masculine singular: هاد/هادا - Example: هادا الولد طويل = This boy is tall.
Feminine singular: هادي/هاي - Example: هاي البنت شاطرة = This girl is smart.
Plural (all genders, humans and non-humans): هدول
Example: هدول الطلاب شاطرين = These students are smart.
Example: هدول الكتب جداد = These books are new.
2. Distal (far)
Masculine singular: هداك - Example: هداك البيت بعيد = That house is far.
Feminine singular: هديك - Example: هديك السيارة سريعة = That car is fast.
Plural: هدولاك - Example: هدولاك الأولاد شاطرين= Those kids are smart
Key Differences: MSA vs. Dialect Usage
Plural: Levantine can use one plural demonstrative for everything (هدول), regardless of human vs. non-human. You will also hear هاي with some non-human plurals in natural speech: هاي الكتب = these books. Both are common.
Gender: Masculine/feminine agreement is kept & maintained in Levantine dialect.
So, adjectives still agree in number and gender with the noun:
هادا الولد الطويل = This tall boy.
هاي البنت الطويلة = This tall girl.
هدول الأولاد الطوال = These tall boys/kids.
Case agreement: As Arabic dialects in general skip the case ending system, case agreement is not applicable within the demonstratives.
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