those

Those children are playing with a red ball in the sunny park.

Definition

1. Determiner:

   • Plural form of "that": "those" is used to refer to specific people, things, or ideas that are distant in time, space, or thought from the speaker or writer. It indicates a plural noun that is not physically or conceptually close.

2. Pronoun:

   • Plural demonstrative pronoun: "those" replaces a plural noun phrase that has been previously mentioned or is understood from context, referring to items or individuals that are distant or separate from the speaker.

Usage Examples

• Determiner:

  • Can you pass me those books on the top shelf? (Refers to specific books that are far from the speaker.)
  • I don't agree with those opinions expressed in the meeting. (Refers to ideas that are distant in thought or time.)

• Pronoun:

  • Those are the ones I wanted. (Replaces the plural noun phrase "the ones" that are distant or previously mentioned.)
  • Of all the options, those seem the most practical. (Refers to a specific set of options not immediately present.)

Advanced Usage

• "those who": a common construction referring to a specific group of people.

  • Those who arrive early will get the best seats. (Refers to a defined subset of people based on a condition.)

• "those of": used to compare or identify a subset within a larger group.

  • The results of this study differ from those of previous research. (Refers to the results of previous research.)

Variants and Related Words

• That (determiner/pronoun): the singular form of "those", referring to one distant item.

  • I prefer that chair over this one. (Singular distant object.)

• This (determiner/pronoun): the singular form referring to something near the speaker.

  • This is my book. (Singular near object.)

• These (determiner/pronoun): the plural form of "this", referring to items near the speaker.

  • These apples are fresh. (Plural near objects.)

Synonyms

• Those ones: an informal alternative meaning the same plural distant items.

  • I'll take those ones, please. (Informal, same meaning as "those".)

• Yonder: an archaic or literary term for distant objects.

  • Look at yonder mountains. (Literary, distant plural.)

Related Idioms

• "Those were the days": an expression of nostalgia for a past time.

  • Remember our childhood summers? Those were the days! (Refers to a fondly remembered past period.)

• "In those days": referring to a specific past time period.

  • In those days, people wrote letters by hand. (Refers to a historical or remembered era.)