Japanese kosoado system: guide to demonstratives

O kosoado system in Japanese organizes demonstratives and interrogative words into four series: こ for the speaker's field, そ for the listener's field or a resumed reference, あ for something distant, and ど for questions. After understanding this logic, it becomes easier to choose between これ, この, ここ, こちら and other words from the same family.

Although many explanations call the whole set of “demonstrative pronouns,” the words do not have the same function. これ can occupy the place of a thing alone; この needs to come before a noun; ここ points to a place. This guide shows the differences with tables, examples, dialogue, and exercises.

Summary of the kosoado system

O Marugoto demonstrative chart, from Japan Foundation, brings together the families of things, places, direction, and noun modification. The Tokyo University of Foreign Studies also presents the correspondence between これ, ここ, この and their series.

These words appear from the beginner level and combine with basic structures of japanese grammar. To read the examples as complete sentences, it also helps to recognize the role of particles は, が, を, に, and で.

How to choose between こ, そ, あ, and ど

The choice does not depend only on a fixed translation like “this,” “that,” or “that over there.” It depends on the relationship between the referent, the speaker, and the listener.

• こ series: points to something in the speaker's field or perceived as close to them.
• そ series: points to something in the listener's field. In conversation, it can also refer back to information the interlocutor has just mentioned.
• あ series: points to something distant from both. In memory uses, it can refer to something the speaker and listener recognize as shared.
• ど series: asks which thing, place, direction, person, or type is in question.

When the speaker and listener are side by side, the series こ covers what is close to both, そ can indicate an intermediate zone, and あ points to the distant zone. When they are face to face, こ tends to mark the speaker's side, そ the listener's side, and あ what is far from both. This spatial distinction is explained in the official TUFS module on これ, それ, and あれ.

これ, それ, あれ, and どれ: demonstrating things

これ, それ, あれ and どれ point to things without needing to repeat the noun. Therefore, they can appear directly with a particle or with です.

これは何ですか。
Kore wa nan desu ka.
What is this?

それは日本語の辞書です。
Sore wa nihongo no jisho desu.
That is a Japanese dictionary.

あれは駅です。
Are wa eki desu.
That is the station.

田中さんの傘はどれですか。
Tanaka-san no kasa wa dore desu ka.
Which is Tanaka's umbrella?

In questions with 何, the reading changes depending on what follows. The guide on when to use なん or なに explains why What is it? is read nan desu ka.

If you want to specifically practice the spatial contrast of this trio, also see the short lesson on これ・それ・あれ. Here, the goal is to understand the complete system and compare families with different functions.

この, その, あの and どの: pointing to a noun

この, その, あの and どの they do not replace the noun: they come immediately before it. The TUFS classifies the construction as このN／そのN／あのN, in which N represents the indicated name.

この本はおもしろいです。
Kono hon wa omoshiroi desu.
This book is interesting.

そのかばんは私のです。
Sono kaban wa watashi no desu.
That bag is mine.

あの人は山田先生です。
Ano hito wa Yamada-sensei desu.
That person is Professor Yamada.

どの電車が東京へ行きますか。
Dono densha ga Tōkyō e ikimasu ka.
Which train goes to Tokyo?

The essential difference is syntactic:

For people, prefer a noun expression, such as この人 (“this person”) or the respectful form この方. Using これ to point at a person usually sounds inappropriate.

ここ, そこ, あそこ and どこ: demonstrating places

The family ここ・そこ・あそこ・どこ points to places. It follows the same spatial division as the other series.

すみません、トイレはどこですか。
Sumimasen, toire wa doko desu ka.
Excuse me, where is the restroom?

トイレはあそこです。
Toire wa asoko desu.
The restroom is over there.

ここに座ってもいいですか。
Koko ni suwatte mo ii desu ka.
Can I sit here?

Note that ここ can be the topic in ここは教室です (“this is the classroom”) or receive the location particle in ここにあります (“it is here”). This shows why it is better to understand the function of particles than to memorize an isolated translation.

For more examples with only places, see the lesson on ここ・そこ・あそこ. A TUFS explanation about this family confirms the division between the speaker's area, the listener's area, and the region distant from both.

こちら, そちら, あちら and どちら: direction and politeness

こちら, そちら, あちら and どちら can indicate direction or side. In customer service and other polite situations, they also serve as more courteous forms for “here”, “there”, “over there”, and “where”. Depending on the context, どちら it can also ask “which of the two” or, with respect, “who”.

受付はこちらです。
Uketsuke wa kochira desu.
The reception is this way.

エレベーターはあちらです。
Erebētā wa achira desu.
The elevator is over there.

ご出身はどちらですか。
Goshusshin wa dochira desu ka.
Where are you from?

Do not translate どちら always in the same way. In コーヒーとお茶と、どちらがいいですか, the question is “which of the two do you prefer?”. In どちらさまですか, one respectfully asks who the person is.

こんな, そんな, あんな and どんな: type or characteristic

This family describes “something of this kind”, “of that kind”, “of that kind over there”, or asks “what kind of”. It usually appears before a noun and refers to characteristics, manner, or class, not just physical distance.

こんな本を探しています。
Konna hon o sagashite imasu.
I am looking for a book of this kind.

そんなことは言っていません。
Sonna koto wa itte imasen.
I didn't say something like that.

あんな店には行きません。
Anna mise ni wa ikimasen.
I won't go to a store like that.

どんな音楽が好きですか。
Donna ongaku ga suki desu ka.
What kind of music do you like?

どの and どんな they ask different questions. どの本 asks you to identify which book among options; どんな本 asks about the type or characteristics of the book.

The use of それ and あの in a conversation

The series also organize references in discourse. When the interlocutor presents information, それ or その they often take it up again:

A: 来週、試験があります。
Raishū, shiken ga arimasu.
Next week, there will be an exam.

B: それは大変ですね。
Sore wa taihen desu ne.
That's tough, isn't it?

When both recognize a shared memory or reference, the series あ can sound natural:

あの店を覚えていますか。
Ano mise o oboete imasu ka.
Do you remember that store?

These uses depend on what the speaker and listener consider accessible in the conversation. For beginners, the spatial rule is the first step; then, observe how context creates informational proximity.

Dialogue in a store

Customer: すみません、この時計はいくらですか。
Sumimasen, kono tokei wa ikura desu ka.
Excuse me, how much is this watch?

Attendant: それは三千円です。
Sore wa sanzen-en desu.
That one costs 3,000 yen.

Customer: あの黒い時計はどうですか。
Ano kuroi tokei wa dō desu ka.
How about that black watch?

Attendant: あれは五千円です。
Are wa gosen-en desu.
That one costs 5,000 yen.

Customer: どちらが人気ですか。
Dochira ga ninki desu ka.
Which one is more popular?

Attendant: こちらの時計です。
Kochira no tokei desu.
It's this watch here.

The dialogue alternates between a form that accompanies the noun (この時計) and one that replaces it (それ). This alternation is common because it avoids repeating the same noun. The guide on how to form sentences in japanese helps analyze the order and elements omitted by context.

Common mistakes with demonstratives

• Put これ before a noun: say この本, not これ本.
• To use この alone: if there is no noun, use これ or recover the name by context with another structure.
• Translating only as this, that, and that: consider the speaker's position, the listener's, and the reference in the conversation.
• Confusing どれ and どの: どれ appears alone; どの requires a noun.
• Confusing どの and どんな: the first identifies an option; the second asks the type or characteristic.
• To use これ for people: prefer この人, その人 or polite forms with 方.
• Treating こちら only as “here”: it can indicate direction, person, side, or one of two options, depending on context.

Exercise

1. You are holding a book. Complete: This is a Japanese book.
2. The book is near the listener. Complete: Whose book is this?
3. Ask “Which is your umbrella?” without repeating the noun in the expected answer.
4. Ask where the station is.
5. Complete with the word that asks about the type: What kind of movies do you like?
6. Correct the sentence: This bag is mine.

Answers: 1. これ; 2. その; 3. Which is your umbrella?; 4. Where is the station?; 5. どんな; 6. This bag is mine..

Summary

• こ relates to the speaker's field; そ, to the listener's or to a resumption; あ, to what is distant or shared in memory; ど forms questions.
• これ・それ・あれ・どれ point to things and can appear without a noun.
• この・その・あの・どの need to come before a noun.
• ここ・そこ・あそこ・どこ point to places.
• こちら・そちら・あちら・どちら indicate direction, side, and polite forms.
• こんな・そんな・あんな・どんな describe or ask about type and characteristic.

Instead of memorizing five separate lists, use two questions: “what is the function of this word?” and “which field or reference am I talking about?”. Then, apply the answer to word order in Japanese and the particles required by the sentence.