Demonstrative Pronouns in Russian

Demonstrative Pronouns in Russian

Demonstrative pronouns in Russian are used to indicate or emphasize the identity of a noun by pointing to it in terms of its proximity or distance from the speaker. In other words, they help to specify which particular thing or things are being referred to. The demonstrative pronouns in Russian correspond to English terms like «this,» «that,» «these,» and «those.»

Russian demonstrative pronouns agree with the noun they refer to in terms of gender, number, and case. They have different forms depending on whether they refer to something near or far, and they also change to reflect the grammatical case of the sentence.


1. Basic Demonstrative Pronouns

There are two types of demonstrative pronouns in Russian:

  • Demonstrative pronouns for something near (this, these)
  • Demonstrative pronouns for something far (that, those)

Here is a table showing the forms of these pronouns in the nominative case:

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтот (etot)Эта (eta)Это (eto)Эти (eti)
FarТот (tot)Та (ta)То (to)Те (te)

2. Declension of Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns in Russian decline according to gender, number, and case of the noun they modify. The form of the demonstrative pronoun depends on whether the noun it refers to is in the nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, instrumental, or prepositional case.

2.1. Demonstrative Pronouns for the Nominative Case

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтот (etot)Эта (eta)Это (eto)Эти (eti)
FarТот (tot)Та (ta)То (to)Те (te)
  • Пример:
    • Этот стол (This table) [masculine]
    • Эта книга (This book) [feminine]
    • Это окно (This window) [neuter]
    • Эти дети (These children) [plural]

2.2. Demonstrative Pronouns in the Genitive Case

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтого (etogo)Этой (etoy)Этого (etogo)Этих (etikh)
FarТого (togo)Той (toy)Того (togo)Тех (tekh)
  • Пример:
    • Я не вижу этого человека. (I don’t see this person.)
    • Я боюсь той женщины. (I am afraid of that woman.)
    • Я слышу тех людей. (I hear those people.)

2.3. Demonstrative Pronouns in the Dative Case

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтому (etomu)Этой (etoy)Этому (etomu)Этим (etim)
FarТому (tomu)Той (toy)Тому (tomu)Тем (tem)
  • Пример:
    • Я говорю этому человеку. (I am speaking to this person.)
    • Я подойду к той двери. (I will go to that door.)
    • Я расскажу этим детям. (I will tell these children.)

2.4. Demonstrative Pronouns in the Accusative Case

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтот (etot)Эту (etu)Это (eto)Эти (eti)
FarТот (tot)Ту (tu)То (to)Те (te)
  • Пример:
    • Я вижу этот фильм. (I see this movie.)
    • Я прочитал эту книгу. (I read this book.)
    • Я купил то платье. (I bought that dress.)
    • Я люблю эти фильмы. (I love these movies.)

2.5. Demonstrative Pronouns in the Instrumental Case

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтим (etim)Этой (etoy)Этим (etim)Этими (etimi)
FarТем (tem)Той (toy)Тем (tem)Тими (timi)
  • Пример:
    • Я горжусь этим достижением. (I am proud of this achievement.)
    • Мы говорим этой девушке. (We are talking to this girl.)
    • Я занимаюсь этим проектом. (I am working on this project.)

2.6. Demonstrative Pronouns in the Prepositional Case

ProximityMasculineFeminineNeuterPlural
NearЭтом (etom)Этой (etoy)Этом (etom)Этих (etikh)
FarТоме (tome)Той (toy)Томе (tome)Тех (tekh)
  • Пример:
    • Я думаю об этом человеке. (I think about this person.)
    • Мы говорим о той ситуации. (We are talking about that situation.)
    • Я пишу о тех странах. (I am writing about those countries.)

3. Demonstrative Pronouns in Sentences

Here are some example sentences using demonstrative pronouns in different cases:

  • Этот стол очень удобный. (This table is very comfortable.) [Nominative]
  • Я не знаю этих людей. (I do not know these people.) [Genitive]
  • Я дал этот подарок. (I gave this gift.) [Accusative]
  • Я объясняю это детям. (I am explaining this to the children.) [Dative]
  • Мы гордимся этим достижением. (We are proud of this achievement.) [Instrumental]
  • Я думаю о тех событиях. (I am thinking about those events.) [Prepositional]

4. Conclusion

Demonstrative pronouns in Russian are used to point out or emphasize specific objects or people. These pronouns change based on gender, number, and case, and they play an important role in sentence construction. By mastering the forms and functions of demonstrative pronouns, you can make your Russian sentences more precise and descriptive.

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