7 Specifiers and demonstratives
这/這 zhè and 那 nà have two functions.
They can be used as demonstratives, or words that are used to point out an item:
那是我的手机。
那是我的手機。
Nà shì wǒ de shǒujī.
That is my cellphone.
They can be used as specifiers, or words that occur as part of a noun phrase and that identify
specific items:
这三本书
這三本書
zhè sān běn shū
these three books
When used as specifiers, these words each have an alternative pronunciation. 这/這 may be
pronounced zhè or zhèi. 那 may be pronounced nà or nèi. The choice of pronunciation varies
by speaker and region of China.
7.1 这/這 zhè ‘this’ and 那 nà ‘that’ as demonstratives
As demonstratives, 这/這 zhè ‘this’ and 那 nà ‘that’ refer to an entire noun phrase, either a
concrete object or an abstract concept. They always occur at the beginning of the sentence, and
they serve as the subject of the sentence. They can occur in statements or in questions.
那是中文字典。
Nà shì Zhōngwén zìdiǎn.
That is a Chinese dictionary.
这是我的书。
這是我的書。
Zhè shì wǒ de shū.
This is my book.
那是什么？
那是甚麼？
Nà shì shénme?
What is that?
(lit. ‘That is what?’)
这是什么意思？
這是甚麼意思？
Zhè shì shénme yìsi?
What is the meaning of this?
(lit. ‘This is what meaning?’)
