Italian demonstratives — questo (this) and quello (that) — are the words you use to point at things and distinguish what's near you from what's farther away. Questo has four neat forms that agree with the noun: questo libro (this book, m.s.), questa casa (this house, f.s.), questi libri (these books, m.p.), queste case (these houses, f.p.), with elision before vowels giving quest'uomo and quest'amica. Quello is trickier because it mirrors the definite article: quel ragazzo, quello studente, quella ragazza, quell'amico, quei ragazzi, quegli studenti, quelle ragazze. Once you see that quel/quello/quella/quell'/quei/quegli/quelle line up with il/lo/la/l'/i/gli/le, the whole system clicks.
In the exercises below you'll practice matching the right form of questo and quello to nouns of every gender, number, and starting letter, and you'll learn the meaningful difference between near and far reference in real situations — pointing at items in a shop, choosing dishes on a menu, distinguishing people in a crowd. You'll also see how questo and quello can stand alone as pronouns (Voglio questo, non quello — I want this one, not that one), which makes them genuinely useful in everyday transactions. Get these forms automatic and you'll find yourself pointing, choosing, and clarifying with much more precision.
Use 'questo' for things near the speaker. It has four forms that agree with the noun in gender and number: • questo (masculine singular): questo libro (this book) • questa (feminine singular): questa casa (this house) • questi (masculine plural): questi libri (these books) • queste (feminine plural): queste case (these houses) Before a vowel, both questo and questa drop the final vowel and add an apostrophe — this is called elision: • quest'uomo (this man) • quest'amica (this female friend)
Use 'quello' for things away from the speaker. Its forms mirror the Italian definite article (il, lo, la, l', i, gli, le): Singular masculine: • quel + regular consonant (like 'il'): quel libro (that book) • quello + z / s+consonant / gn / ps / x (like 'lo'): quello zaino (that backpack) Singular feminine: • quella + consonant (like 'la'): quella casa (that house) • quell' + vowel (like 'l'): quell'amica (that female friend) Plural masculine: • quei + regular consonant (like 'i'): quei libri (those books) • quegli + vowel / z / s+consonant / gn (like 'gli'): quegli studenti (those students) Plural feminine: • quelle (like 'le'): quelle case (those houses)
The key distinction: • questo = near the speaker (this / these) • quello = away from the speaker (that / those) Example: — Questo libro è mio. (This book is mine — the one in my hand.) — Quel libro è tuo. (That book is yours — the one over there.) Both demonstratives agree with the noun they modify in gender and number.
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Questo — Masculine Singular
10 questions
Questa — Feminine Singular
10 questions
Questi — Masculine Plural
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Queste — Feminine Plural
10 questions
Questo — All Four Forms
10 questions
Questo — Elision Before Vowels
10 questions
Questo — Gender and Number Recognition
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Questo — In Sentences
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Questo — Fill in the Blank
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Questo — Group 1 Review
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Quello — 'Quel' (Masculine Singular, Regular Consonant)
10 questions
Quello — 'Quella' vs. 'Quell'' (Feminine Singular)
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Quello — All Singular Forms
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Quello — The Definite Article Connection
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Quello — Quel vs. Quello (Tricky Consonants)
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Quello — Singular Forms in Sentences
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Quello — Singular Mixed Practice
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Quello — More Singular Sentences
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Quello Singular — Fill in the Blank
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Quello Singular — Group 2 Review
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Quello Plural — 'Quei' (Masculine, Regular Consonant)
10 questions
Quello Plural — 'Quegli' (Masculine, Vowel/Z/S+Cons)
10 questions
Quello Plural — 'Quelle' (Feminine Plural)
10 questions
Quello Plural — Quei vs. Quegli
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Quello Plural — All Three Forms
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Quello Plural — In Sentences
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Quello Plural — Mixed Practice
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Quello Plural — More Sentences
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Quello Plural — Fill in the Blank
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Quello Plural — Group 3 Review
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Questo vs. Quello — Near vs. Far
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Questo vs. Quello — Contrasting Pairs
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Questo vs. Quello — Choosing the Right Form
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Questo vs. Quello — In Dialogue
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Questo vs. Quello — English to Italian
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Questo vs. Quello — Complete the Sentence
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Questo vs. Quello — Shopping Scenario
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Questo vs. Quello — Mixed Forms Challenge
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Questo vs. Quello — Key Differences
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Questo vs. Quello — Group 4 Review
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All Forms — Mixed Sentences
10 questions
All Forms — English to Italian Translation
10 questions
All Forms — Gap Fill in a Passage
10 questions
All Forms — Gender and Number Challenge
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All Forms — Vocabulary in Context
10 questions
All Forms — Full Sentences Practice
10 questions
All Forms — Real-Life Contexts
10 questions
All Forms — Spot the Error
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All Forms — Comprehensive Practice
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All Forms — Final Review
10 questions
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The two main demonstratives are questo (this) and quello (that), agreeing in gender and number: questo/questa/questi/queste, quello/quella/quelli/quelle. Use questo for things near the speaker, quello for things farther away.
Quello changes form like the definite article when it precedes a noun: quel libro, quello studente, quell’amico, quei libri, quegli studenti, quella casa, quelle case. The forms mirror il/lo/l’/i/gli/la/le.
Yes. As pronouns they have only four forms: questo, questa, questi, queste; quello, quella, quelli, quelle. "Voglio questo" (I want this one), "Quelli sono i miei" (Those are mine).
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