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Mandarin grammar Part of Chapter 2

CEFR A1-A2

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Test yourself (22 questions)

Mandarin Demonstratives: 这 (zhè) and 那 (nà) With Examples

By Michael McGettrick and Wee Khang LinUpdated 11 October 2026

Mandarin has two demonstratives and keeps them forever: (zhè) for what is near the speaker, (nà) for what is not. No gender, no case, no agreement. What changes is the small word after them.

Quick check

Three quick questions on what you have just read. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

Pick the right demonstrative: 这个 (zhège) for one thing near the speaker, 那个 (nàge) for one thing away from the speaker, 这些 (zhèxiē) for several near, 那些 (nàxiē) for several away.

  1. 人是我朋友。 (One person, standing right beside me.)

    ___ rén shì wǒ péng you 。 (One person, standing right beside me.)

  2. 人是谁？ (One person, on the far side of the street.)

    ___ rén shì shuí ？ (One person, on the far side of the street.)

  3. 人都是好人。 (Several people, here in the room with me.)

    ___ rén dōu shì hǎo rén 。 (Several people, here in the room with me.)

The whole system on one screen

The colours stay the same all page long:

这 zhè (near)那 nà (far)the measure word slotWhat do the colours mean?
ShapeHanziPinyinEnglish
This + nounzhège rénthis person
That + nounnàge rénthat person
Thesezhèxiē rénthese people
Thosenàxiē rénthose people
Standing alone。Zhè shì wǒ xiānsheng.This is my husband
这个 zhège, this one那个 nàge, that one
这个 zhège, this one那个 nàge, that one

The pattern: demonstrative + measure word + noun

Between the demonstrative and the noun goes a measure word. The general-purpose one is (gè):

Demonstrative
Measure word
Noun

zhège rén, this person; nàge dōngxi, that thing; zhè běn shū, this book

HanziPinyinEnglish
zhège rénthis person
nàge dōngxithat thing
zhè běn shūthis book
nà bēi kāfēithat coffee
A speaker stands on the grass pointing at a cup right beside them; a listener a little way off has a second cup by their feet; a third, tiny cup sits far away on top of a green hill.

Two words, not three: 这 zhè for the cup by the speaker, 那 nà for both the others, by the listener or far away on the hill.

Nouns with their own measure word use it in the same slot, as (běn) does for books. For a person you want to be polite about, the measure word is (wèi):

  • 。 (Zhè wèi xiānsheng shì wǒ de lǎoshī.) - This gentleman is my teacher.

In casual speech the measure word is often dropped with a few very common nouns: (zhè rén), (zhè shì). Do not build on that; (zhège) + noun is always safe.

Adding a number

A number goes between the demonstrative and the measure word, the same order as English:

  • 。 (Zhè sān běn shū shì wǒ de.) - These three books are mine.
  • ？ (Nà liǎng ge rén shì shéi?) - Who are those two people?

Plurals: 些 (xiē) replaces the measure word

Mandarin nouns do not change for the plural. For more than one thing, (xiē), "some", takes the measure word's slot:

One person becomes several: 些 xiē takes the place of 个 gè.
HanziPinyinEnglish
zhèxiē rénthese people
nàxiē dōngxithose things
zhèxiē shìthese matters
  • 。 (Nàxiē rén dōu zǒu le.) - Those people have all gone.

With a number, (xiē) goes: the number already says how many, so it is (zhè sān běn shū), never .

Standing alone

Before (shì), the bare demonstrative points at a whole thing or situation, with no measure word:

HanziPinyinEnglish
。Zhè shì wǒ xiānsheng.This is my husband
？Nà shì shéi?Who is that?

Elsewhere, with no noun after it, use (zhège) or (nàge), this one or that one:

  • ，。 (Wǒ yào zhège, bú yào nàge.) - I want this one, not that one.

The family: here, there, like this, so

(zhè) and (nà) are also the first half of a small set of everyday words. The pattern holds: is near, is far.

NearFarPinyinEnglish
zhèr, nàrhere, there
zhèlǐ, nàlǐhere, there
zhème, nàmeso, this much
zhèyàng, nàyànglike this
A street scene: a person on the pavement points at the cafe right next to them; across the road is a shop; far away on a green hill stands a little church.

The cafe beside the speaker is 这儿 zhèr; the shop across the road and the church on the hill are both 那儿 nàr. 这里 zhèlǐ and 那里 nàlǐ split the street the same way.

HanziPinyinEnglish
。Nǐ de shū zài zhèr.Your book is here
。Bié zhème shuō.Don't say that
。Tā méiyǒu nǐ nàme gāo.He isn't as tall as you

(zhèr) and (nàr) are northern; (zhèlǐ) and (nàlǐ) are used everywhere and are commoner in the south and in writing. For where things are, see location and existence.

Near and far is the speaker's call

(zhè) is close to the speaker in space or time; (nà) is everything else, including the past:

  • 。 (Nà shíhou wǒ zài Zhōngguó.) - I was in China at the time.

Before a measure word, many northern speakers say as zhèi and as nèi: (zhèige). Same word, either reading is fine. And (nàge), said over and over, is the Mandarin "um" while someone hunts for a word.

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
the demonstrative comes first
the number replaces (xiē)
no (de) after the measure word
(xiē) already makes it plural

(zhè) and (nà) are on the AQA GCSE Chinese specification at Foundation and Higher tier.

What to do next

  1. Do the drill below.
  2. Learn the commonest measure words on the measure words page.
  3. Then interrogative pronouns: (nǎ), which, works exactly like (zhè) and (nà).

Practise: test yourself

Pick the right one

0/6

Pick the right demonstrative: 这个 (zhège) for one thing near the speaker, 那个 (nàge) for one thing away from the speaker, 这些 (zhèxiē) for several near, 那些 (nàxiē) for several away.

  1. 人是我朋友。 (One person, standing right beside me.)

    ___ rén shì wǒ péng you 。 (One person, standing right beside me.)

  2. 人是谁？ (One person, on the far side of the street.)

    ___ rén shì shuí ？ (One person, on the far side of the street.)

  3. 人都是好人。 (Several people, here in the room with me.)

    ___ rén dōu shì hǎo rén 。 (Several people, here in the room with me.)

  4. 人都走了。 (Several people, over there, now gone.)

    ___ rén dōu zǒu le 。 (Several people, over there, now gone.)

  5. 东西是我的。 (One thing, right here in my hand.)

    ___ dōng xi shì wǒ de 。 (One thing, right here in my hand.)

  6. 事我不想说。 (Several matters, from long ago.)

    ___ shì wǒ bù xiǎng shuō 。 (Several matters, from long ago.)

Put the words in order

0/3

Put the words in order: demonstrative, then number, then measure word, then noun.

  1. These three books are mine.

    Your sentence is empty.

  2. Who are those two people?

    Your sentence is empty.

  3. This person is my teacher.

    Your sentence is empty.

Spot the mistake

0/3

Each sentence has one mistake. Tap it.

  1. zhè xiē sān běn shū shì wǒ de 。

  2. zhè ge de rén shì shuí ？

  3. zhè xiē rén men shì wǒ de péng you 。

Pick the right one

0/5

这 (zhè) or 那 (nà)? 这 points at what is near the speaker in space or time; 那 points at everything further away.

  1. The bag on your lap: 个东西

    The bag on your lap: ___ gè dōng xi

  2. The person waving from the far side of the street: 个人

    The person waving from the far side of the street: ___ gè rén

  3. Introducing the man standing next to you: 是我先生。

    Introducing the man standing next to you: ___ shì wǒ xiān sheng 。

  4. Something that happened years ago: 些事

    Something that happened years ago: ___ xiē shì

  5. The thing on the top shelf across the room: 个东西

    The thing on the top shelf across the room: ___ gè dōng xi

Matching

0/5

Near or far: match each word to its English.

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Practice worksheets and infographics

Practice worksheets with answer keys built in, plus infographic and listicle formats. Open any one to view, print or save.

Infographics

  1. Key points infographic
  2. The whole system on one screen
  3. The whole system on one screen
  4. The pattern: demonstrative + measure word + noun
  5. Plurals: 些 (xiē) replaces the measure word
  6. Standing alone
  7. The family: here, there, like this, so
  8. The family: here, there, like this, so
  9. Mistakes English speakers make

Other formats

  1. Listicle

More grammar on this course

Frequently asked questions

Do Mandarin demonstratives change for gender or number?
No. (zhè) and (nà) are the entire inventory, and neither has masculine, feminine, plural or case forms. Number is carried by what follows: a measure word such as (gè) for one thing (, zhège rén, this person), or (xiē) for several (, zhèxiē rén, these people).
Why do I need (gè) in (zhège rén)?
In standard Mandarin a demonstrative does not sit directly on a counted noun. The slot between them takes a measure word, and (gè) is the general-purpose one: (zhège rén, this person), (nàge dōngxi, that thing). Nouns with their own measure word use it in the same slot: (zhè běn shū, this book).
How do I say 'these' and 'those' in Mandarin?
Swap the measure word for (xiē): (zhèxiē, these) and (nàxiē, those). So (zhège rén, this person) becomes (zhèxiē rén, these people). With a number, the number does the counting and goes: (zhè sān běn shū, these three books).
Can (zhè) and (nà) stand alone as subjects?
Yes, before (shì): (zhè shì wǒ xiānsheng, this is my husband), ？(nà shì shéi?, who is that?). Standing alone like this they point at a whole thing or situation, no measure word needed. (zhège) and (nàge) alone mean this one and that one: (wǒ yào zhège), I'll have this one.
Why do some people say zhèige and nèige?
It is a common spoken reading, especially in the north: before a measure word, is often said zhèi and nèi, so sounds like zhèige. It is the same word, historically a fusion with (yī, one). Both readings are correct; understand the other one when you hear it.