grammar.pronouns.demonstrative
Demonstrative pronouns: este, ese, aquel
Three distances: este (near me), ese (near you / nearby), aquel (far from both). They stand alone without a noun: prefiero este.
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Explicación
Demonstrative pronouns stand in for a noun while pointing at its distance from the speakers. They use the three-way system of the determiners: este/esta/estos/estas ('this one', near me), ese/esa/esos/esas ('that one', near you or just mentioned), and aquel/aquella/aquellos/aquellas ('that one over there', far from both). Used alone — without a following noun — they are pronouns: me gusta esa, prefiero este.
They always agree in gender and number with the noun they replace: ¿qué manzanas? — estas; ¿y los libros? — aquellos. Since the 2010 RAE spelling reform, no written accent is needed even in pronoun use (the old éste/ése/aquél is no longer required).
Aquel also reaches back in time, often with a nostalgic tone: aquellos eran otros tiempos. Distinct from these are the neuter forms esto, eso, aquello, which point at ideas or unidentified things rather than a specific gendered noun — see the neuter pronouns rule.
Ejemplos
Which one do you prefer? — This one.
Región: global
That was another era.
Región: global
Of all the desserts, this one is the best; that one I didn't like.