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"that" in seven languages

Meaningthat

Spanish

ese

/ˈese/

other source · Latin IPSUM 'self, the very one'

fem.: esa

Ese is 'that (near you)'; aquel, from ECCU ILLE, is 'that over there'.

French

ce …-là

/sə la/

other source · ce (Old French cest, from ECCE ISTUM) + là 'there' (Latin ILLĀC)

fem.: cette …-là

French has one demonstrative, ce, for 'this' and 'that'; -là added after the noun points away (cet homme-là), -ci points close.

Italian

quello

/ˈkwello/

inherited

fem.: quella

Changes shape like the article: quel libro, quello studente, quell'uomo.

Portuguese

esse

/ˈesi/

other source · Latin IPSUM 'self, the very one'

fem.: essa

Aquele (ECCU ILLE) is 'that over there'. In speech esse also covers 'this'.

Romanian

acel

/aˈtʃel/

inherited

fem.: acea

After the noun it becomes acela (omul acela), in speech ăla.

Catalan

aquell

/əˈkeʎ/

inherited

fem.: aquella

English

that

/ðæt/

native English · Old English þæt

English → ItalianthatquelloNot relatedDifferent sources — learn this one fresh.What English and Italian share

The Latin ancestor

ECCUM ILLUM‘look, that one’

All six sisters descend from it, unless marked otherwise below.

The story

Spanish (and Portuguese) keep three distances, este / ese / aquel; Italian has two, questo and quello; French gets by with one, ce, plus -ci and -là. The ILLE inside quello is the same ILLE that gave the articles el, il, la.

Learn it

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In a sentence

  • es¿Quién es ese hombre?
  • frQui est cet homme-là ?
  • itChi è quell'uomo?
  • ptQuem é esse homem?
  • roCine e omul acela?
  • caQui és aquell home?
  • enWho is that man?

More in Little words

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