Demonstrative Pronouns (This / That / These / Those) – English Grammar Exercises for A1
Choose the best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.
You are sitting in your hotel room, writing an online review. You are comparing the great hotel you are currently staying in (near distance/your current environment) to the expensive, crowded luxury resorts located far down the beach (far distance). Pay close attention to your physical location.
1 You start your review by talking about your current location. “I am writing the review from my room right now. ______ hotel is absolutely wonderful.”
(A) These
(B) This
(C) That
(D) It
2 Looking out your window at the expensive resorts far down the coastline. “I can see some luxury resorts down the beach, but ______ hotels are way too expensive.”
(A) they
(B) these
(C) those
(D) that
3 Sitting on your bed, you describe the comfort. “I am relaxing on the bed right now. ______ bed is so soft and comfortable.”
(A) This
(B) That
(C) It
(D) These
4 Writing about the restaurants located across the busy highway. “We didn’t go to the restaurants across the street because ______ restaurants looked too crowded.”
(A) them
(B) these
(C) that
(D) those
5 Taking a picture of the breakfast plate right in front of you. “I am eating my free breakfast right now. ______ food is delicious.”
(A) It
(B) This
(C) That
(D) These
6 Describing the clean bathroom inside your current room. “I just washed my face. ______ towels in my bathroom are very clean and fresh.”
(A) They
(B) Those
(C) These
(D) This
7 Sitting on a lounge chair right next to the water. “I am relaxing by the water. ______ swimming pool is incredibly clean.”
(A) These
(B) It
(C) That
(D) This
8 Comparing your current room to the expensive ones down the road. “______ room here is great, and I really don’t need ______ expensive rooms down the street.”
(A) This / those
(B) It / they
(C) That / these
(D) These / that
9 Looking out the balcony at a massive mountain in the distance. “From my balcony, I can see a big mountain. ______ mountain is beautiful at sunset.”
(A) Those
(B) It
(C) That
(D) This
10 Touching the pillows on your current bed. “I slept so well last night because ______ pillows on my bed are perfect.”
(A) they
(B) these
(C) those
(D) this
11 Warning people about the bar located on the other side of the bay. “Do not buy drinks at the bar across the bay. ______ drinks cost a fortune!”
(A) They
(B) That
(C) These
(D) Those
12 Praising the staff member standing right next to you at the front desk. “______ receptionist helping me right now is very friendly.”
(A) This
(B) She
(C) These
(D) That
13 Holding your physical room keys in your hand. “I am holding my room keys. ______ keys open both my room and the fitness center.”
(A) They
(B) Those
(C) These
(D) This
14 Pointing to the small boats far out in the ocean. “I love sitting on the balcony and watching ______ boats far out in the sea.”
(A) them
(B) those
(C) that
(D) these
15 Comparing your current affordable hotel to the huge resort at the end of the beach. “I prefer ______ cozy hotel over ______ huge, noisy resort at the end of the beach.”
(A) this / that
(B) that / this
(C) these / those
(D) it / it
16 Looking at the small bottles of soap inside your shower. “______ little bottles of shampoo in my shower smell exactly like coconuts.”
(A) They
(B) This
(C) Those
(D) These
17 Looking at a group of tourists waiting in the rain at a distant bus stop. “I feel bad for ______ tourists waiting in the rain at the bus stop far away.”
(A) these
(B) those
(C) them
(D) that
18 Holding the final invoice in your hand. “I am looking at my bill now. ______ price is very reasonable.”
(A) It
(B) That
(C) This
(D) These
19 Comparing the food you are currently eating to the fancy meals far away. “______ local food we are eating here is much better than ______ fancy meals they serve at the big resorts.”
(A) This / those
(B) That / these
(C) It / they
(D) These / that
20 Writing the final summary sentence of the review. “To summarize, ______ vacation here is amazing, and I don’t miss ______ loud city hotels at all.”
(A) that / these
(B) it / they
(C) these / that
(D) this / those
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) This
- Why it’s correct (The Key): You are inside the hotel right now (near distance/current environment), and “hotel” is singular.
- Error Analysis: (D) “It” is a Common Mistake (personal pronouns cannot act as demonstrative adjectives before a noun). (A) “These” is a Structural Error (plural). (C) “That” is a Meaning Trap (implies the hotel is far away, but you are inside it).
2 (C) those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The luxury resorts are plural and located “far down the coastline” (far distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “they” is a Common Mistake (“they hotels” is invalid). (D) “that” is a Structural Error (singular). (B) “these” is a Meaning Trap (implies the hotels are right next to you).
3 (A) This
- Why it’s correct (The Key): You are physically sitting on the bed (near distance) and it is singular.
- Error Analysis: (C) “It” is a Common Mistake. (D) “These” is a Structural Error. (B) “That” is a Meaning Trap.
4 (D) those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The restaurants are plural and “across the busy highway” (far distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “them” is a Common Mistake (“them restaurants” is incorrect grammar). (C) “that” is a Structural Error. (B) “these” is a Meaning Trap.
5 (B) This
- Why it’s correct (The Key): “Food” is an uncountable noun (treated as singular) and the plate is right in front of you.
- Error Analysis: (A) “It” is a Common Mistake. (D) “These” is a Structural Error. (C) “That” is a Meaning Trap.
6 (C) These
- Why it’s correct (The Key): Towels are plural and inside your own bathroom (near distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “They” is a Common Mistake. (D) “This” is a Structural Error. (B) “Those” is a Meaning Trap.
7 (D) This
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The pool is singular and you are relaxing right next to it (near distance).
- Error Analysis: (B) “It” is a Common Mistake. (A) “These” is a Structural Error. (C) “That” is a Meaning Trap.
8 (A) This / those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): Your current room is near (This). The expensive rooms down the street are plural and far (those).
- Error Analysis: (B) “It / they” is a Common Mistake. (D) “These / that” is a Structural Error (“These room” is wrong). (C) “That / these” is a Meaning Trap (reverses distance).
9 (C) That
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The mountain is singular and in the distance.
- Error Analysis: (B) “It” is a Common Mistake. (A) “Those” is a Structural Error. (D) “This” is a Meaning Trap.
10 (B) these
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The pillows are plural and on your current bed (near distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “they” is a Common Mistake. (D) “this” is a Structural Error. (C) “those” is a Meaning Trap.
11 (D) Those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The drinks are plural and located at a bar across the bay (far distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “They” is a Common Mistake. (B) “That” is a Structural Error. (C) “These” is a Meaning Trap.
12 (A) This
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The receptionist is singular and standing right next to you at the desk.
- Error Analysis: (B) “She” is a Common Mistake. (C) “These” is a Structural Error. (D) “That” is a Meaning Trap.
13 (C) These
- Why it’s correct (The Key): Keys are plural and in your hand (near distance/zero distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “They” is a Common Mistake. (D) “This” is a Structural Error. (B) “Those” is a Meaning Trap.
14 (B) those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): Boats are plural and far out in the ocean (far distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “them” is a Common Mistake. (C) “that” is a Structural Error. (D) “these” is a Meaning Trap.
15 (A) this / that
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The cozy hotel is your current location (this). The huge resort is at the end of the beach (that). Both are singular.
- Error Analysis: (D) “it / it” is a Common Mistake. (C) “these / those” is a Structural Error (hotels are singular here). (B) “that / this” is a Meaning Trap (reverses distance completely).
16 (D) These
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The bottles of shampoo are plural and inside your current shower (near distance).
- Error Analysis: (A) “They” is a Common Mistake. (B) “This” is a Structural Error. (C) “Those” is a Meaning Trap.
17 (B) those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The tourists are plural and far away.
- Error Analysis: (C) “them” is a Common Mistake. (D) “that” is a Structural Error. (A) “these” is a Meaning Trap.
18 (C) This
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The price relates to the bill currently in your hand (near distance/singular).
- Error Analysis: (A) “It” is a Common Mistake. (D) “These” is a Structural Error. (B) “That” is a Meaning Trap.
19 (A) This / those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): Local food is uncountable/singular and you are eating it right now (This). Fancy meals are plural and served at distant resorts (those).
- Error Analysis: (C) “It / they” is a Common Mistake. (D) “These / that” is a Structural Error. (B) “That / these” is a Meaning Trap (reverses distance).
20 (D) this / those
- Why it’s correct (The Key): The vacation is your current, present experience (this). The city hotels are plural and located in a different geographical area (those).
- Error Analysis: (B) “it / they” is a Common Mistake. (C) “these / that” is a Structural Error. (A) “that / these” is a Meaning Trap.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The Environmental Rule (Your Current Space): When writing a review or talking about a place, you use This / These to describe the environment you are currently inside. The hotel you are in, the bed you are sleeping on, and the food you are currently eating all take This or These because you are immersed in them.
- Comparing to the Distance: You use That / Those to describe places, buildings, or things that are in a different geographical area (like the resorts down the beach, the mountains in the distance, or the city you left behind).
- The “Pronoun Trap” in Reviews: A very common mistake for beginners is using It or They right before a noun (e.g., saying “It hotel is good” or “They pillows are soft”). Personal pronouns replace nouns; they do not sit next to them. You must use demonstrative adjectives (“This hotel is good”, “These pillows are soft”).