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celui, celle, ceux, celles
Celui, celle, ceux, celles
('this one' or 'that one' in the singular; 'these,' 'those' or 'the ones' in the plural) are demonstrative pronouns.
They replace a specific noun, which has been mentioned or is obvious from context, in order to avoid repeating it.
They agree in gender and number with the nouns they replace.
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| number |
masculine |
feminine |
| singular |
celui |
celle |
| plural |
ceux |
celles |
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| • |
Celui de/d', celle de/d' etc. show possession. They are generally translated by 'that of', 'those of' or by the possessive form. |
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Tammy: Tu aimes l'accent d'Edouard?
Bette: Je préfère celui de Tex. |
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Tammy: Do you like Edouard's accent?
Bette: I prefer Tex's. |
Tammy: Tu aimes la voix d'Edouard?
Bette: Oh, je préfère celle de Tex. |
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Tammy: Do you like Edouard's voice?
Bette: Oh, I prefer that of Tex. |
Tammy: Tu aimes les yeux d'Edouard?
Bette: Oui, mais je préfère ceux de Tex. |
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Tammy: Do you like Edouard's eyes?
Bette: Yes, but I prefer Tex's. |
Tammy: Tu aimes les oreilles d'Edouard?
Bette: Oui, mais je préfère celles de Tex. |
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Tammy: Do you like Edouard's ears?
Bette: Yes, but I prefer those of Tex. |
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| • |
-ci and -là are added to the demonstrative pronouns to indicate nearness or farness like the distinction between 'this one' and 'that one' in English. |
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| Bette: Tammy, regarde mes dernières photos de Tex! Tu préfères celle-ci ou celle-là? |
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Bette: Tammy, look at my latest pictures of Tex! Do you prefer this one or that one? |
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Celui qui ... , celle qui ... mean 'the one that', 'the one who' and ceux qui ... , celles qui ... mean 'those that / who'. They introduce a relative clause in which they are used as subjects. In the example below, ceux qui is the subject of the verb 'portent'. |
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| Bette: Moi, j'aime les tatous. |
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Bette: Me, I like armadillos. |
| Tammy: Moi aussi, surtout ceux qui portent le béret. |
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Tammy: Me too, especially those who wear berets. |
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Celui que ... and celle que ... mean 'the one that / whom / which', ceux que ... and celles que ... mean 'the ones that / whom / which'. They introduce a relative clause in which they are used as objects. In the example below, celui que is the object of 'j'aime'. |
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| Tammy: Et toi Bette, qui est-ce que tu aimes? |
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Tammy: What about you Bette, who do you love? |
| Bette: Celui que j'aime ne m'aime pas! |
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Bette: The one I love does not love me! |
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Celui dont ... and celle dont ... mean 'the one whose', 'the one of which', ceux dont ... and celles dont ... mean 'those whose', 'the ones of which'. They introduce a relative clause in which the verb takes an object introduced by de (parler de, 'to talk about') |
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| Tammy: De qui tu parles? |
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Tammy: Who are you talking about? |
| Bette: Tu ne connais pas celui dont je parle. |
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Bette: You don't know the one I am talking about! |
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ceci, cela
Ceci (this) and cela (that) are invariable demonstrative pronouns. They refer to things that cannot have a specific gender assigned to them, like ideas or statements. Ça is used in familiar or conversational style in place of cela for emphasis.
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| Tammy: Tu es amoureuse de Tex, cela me semble évident!! |
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Tammy: You are in love with Tex. That seems obvious to me!! |
| Bette: Qu'est-ce que tu racontes?! Tu crois vraiment que je ne respecte pas l'amour entre toi et Tex?! Ça me fait de la peine, ça! |
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Bette: What are you saying!? Do you really believe that I don't respect the love between you and Tex? Now that really upsets me! |
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