Demonstratives

You already know that this, that, these, and those can work as determiners (before a noun) or as pronouns (standing alone). At PSLE level, you will use demonstratives confidently in complex sentence structures -- including multi-clause sentences, formal writing, and contexts where the demonstrative refers to an entire idea rather than a single noun.

What You'll Learn

• How to use demonstratives correctly in multi-clause and compound-complex sentences
• How demonstratives can refer to whole ideas, situations, or clauses -- not just physical objects
• How to handle demonstratives in formal and academic writing, including reported speech
• How to avoid ambiguity when a demonstrative could refer to more than one thing

When to Use

1. Referring to a whole idea or situation: "The school cancelled the excursion at the last minute. That was disappointing for the students." (That refers to the entire previous sentence, not a single noun.)
2. Comparing two ideas or situations: "Some pupils revised every day; others only studied the night before. Those who prepared early performed better." (Those refers to a group identified by the relative clause.)
3. In reported speech: "The teacher explained that this topic would appear in the examination."
4. In formal or academic writing: "The findings suggest that deforestation leads to flooding. This is a concern shared by many scientists." (This summarises the previous point.)
5. Contrasting near and far in time: "In those days, children played outdoors more often. These days, many prefer to stay indoors."

How to Form

Review: Determiners vs Pronouns

Demonstratives Referring to Ideas

In complex texts, a demonstrative pronoun often refers back to an entire clause, sentence, or concept rather than a single noun.

Demonstratives in Multi-Clause Sentences

Demonstratives with Abstract and Formal Nouns

At PSLE level, demonstratives often appear with abstract or formal nouns:

Key Rules

1. A demonstrative pronoun can refer to an entire idea: When a demonstrative stands alone at the start of a sentence, it often summarises or refers back to the idea in the previous sentence. "The government invested heavily in public transport. This improved connectivity across the island." Here, this means the act of investing, not a single noun.

2. Keep the reference clear: When you use a demonstrative pronoun to refer to a previous idea, the reader must be able to tell exactly what it refers to. If the previous sentence contains several ideas, add a noun after the demonstrative to remove ambiguity. Compare: "This was unexpected" (vague if the previous sentence has multiple ideas) vs "This announcement was unexpected" (clear).

3. "Those who" introduces a group defined by a relative clause: "Those who study consistently tend to perform well." Do not use "that who" or "these who." Those is the standard choice for referring to people in formal English when followed by a relative clause.

4. Use "this/these" for what is current or nearby in time; "that/those" for what is past or distant: "In those days, pupils wrote with fountain pens. These days, most use ballpoint pens." The time-distance rule extends beyond physical space.

5. Do not mix singular and plural: Even in complex sentences, this and that remain singular; these and those remain plural. "These issues need to be addressed" (plural), not "This issues need to be addressed."

6. In formal writing, prefer "this/that" + noun over a bare pronoun when clarity is at stake: Examiners reward precision. Writing "This finding suggests..." is clearer and more formal than writing "This suggests..."

7. Demonstratives in reported speech follow the same rules: When reporting what someone said, choose the demonstrative based on the speaker's perspective and the context of the report. "She explained that those rules applied to everyone."

Common Mistakes

Clue Words

Signals that a demonstrative refers to an idea (not a physical object):

previous sentence describes an event, action, or outcome; the demonstrative starts a new sentence summarising or commenting on it

Formal phrases using demonstratives:

this approach, this method, that decision, those who, these measures, these findings, that conclusion, those circumstances, this evidence, this issue

Time-distance signals:

these days, in those days, at that time, at this point, this moment, that era, those years

Tip: When you see a demonstrative pronoun at the start of a sentence in a comprehension passage, ask: "What does this/that/these/those refer to?" Trace it back to the previous sentence. If you can replace the demonstrative with the full idea and the sentence still makes sense, you have found the correct reference.

Practice Tips

1. The substitution test: Replace the demonstrative pronoun with the idea it refers to. If the sentence still reads correctly, your reference is clear. "The canteen introduced a no-plastic policy. This reduced waste significantly." Test: "The no-plastic policy reduced waste significantly." -- makes sense, so this is used correctly.

2. Add a noun for clarity: When practising compositions, try adding a noun after the demonstrative. "This decision" is often clearer than "This" alone. Train yourself to write demonstrative + noun in formal paragraphs.

3. Scan for "those who": In PSLE Grammar MCQs, "those who" is a commonly tested pattern. Remember that those is always the correct choice when followed by "who" to describe a group of people.

4. Time-check for this/these vs that/those: Before choosing, ask whether the sentence talks about the present or current situation (this/these) or something in the past or at a distance (that/those). "In those days" vs "These days" is a favourite PSLE test point.

Quick Reference