Quel livre préfères-tu ? Celui-ci ou celui-là ? — Ma voiture est vieille ; celle de mon frère est neuve. — Les étudiants qui travaillent réussissent, mais ceux qui ne travaillent pas échouent.
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GrammarB1demonstrative pronounspronouns
Demonstrative pronouns: celui, celle, ceux, celles
Les pronoms démonstratifs
B1fr23 min
What you'll learn
- Say 'the one(s)'
- Distinguish this one from that one
- Combine with de and relative pronouns
Tips for this lesson
- celui/celle/ceux/celles agree with the noun they replace.
- They never stand alone — always followed by -ci/-là, de, or a relative pronoun.
- -ci = this one (nearer), -là = that one (further).
Step 1 of 6
1Reading
In context
Read. Notice celui/celle replace a noun and are always followed by something.
Step 2 of 6
2The pattern
The pattern — celui + something
celui/celle/ceux/celles replace a noun and must always be followed by -ci/-là, de, or a relative pronoun.
Demonstrative pronouns mean "the one(s)" and replace a noun already mentioned, agreeing with its gender and number: celui (masc. sing.), celle (fem. sing.), ceux (masc. pl.), celles (fem. pl.). The crucial structural rule: they never stand alone — they must always be followed by one of three things: -ci / -là to contrast this one vs that one (celui-ci, celui-là), de to show possession or origin ("celle de mon frère" — my brother's), or a relative pronoun ("ceux qui travaillent" — those who work). Don't confuse these with the demonstrative adjectives ce/cet/cette/ces, which come before a noun rather than replacing it.
| Masculine | Feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | celui | celle |
| Plural | ceux | celles |
| Followed by | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -ci / -là | this one / that one | celui-ci, celui-là |
| de | possession / origin | celle de mon frère |
| qui / que | the one who/that | ceux qui travaillent |
Celui-ci est plus cher que celui-là.
This one is more expensive than that one.
-ci (nearer) vs -là (further) for contrast.
Ma voiture est vieille ; celle de mon frère est neuve.
My car is old; my brother's is new.
celle de = possession — replaces 'la voiture de mon frère'.
Ceux qui travaillent réussissent.
Those who work succeed.
ceux + qui — reuses the relative pronoun from A2-12.
Je préfère celles que tu as choisies.
I prefer the ones you chose.
celles + que — feminine plural agreement.
Erreurs fréquentes
- Je préfère celui.Je préfère celui-ci. / Je préfère celui de Marie.
celui can never stand alone — it always needs -ci/-là, de, or a relative pronoun after it.
- Ma voiture et celui de mon frère.Ma voiture et celle de mon frère.
The pronoun agrees with the noun it replaces — voiture is feminine, so celle, not celui.
- Celui livre est intéressant.Ce livre est intéressant.
Before a noun you need the demonstrative ADJECTIVE (ce/cet/cette/ces) — celui replaces the noun instead.
Exceptions & à retenir
ce/cela/ça are the neutral forms
For an idea or unnamed thing (not a specific noun), use ce, cela, or ça: c'est vrai, cela m'intéresse, ça va. These don't agree because there's no noun behind them.
ceci and cela contrast without a noun
Ceci est important, cela l'est moins (This is important, that less so) — the neutral equivalents of celui-ci/celui-là, used for ideas rather than countable nouns.
In speech, -là dominates
Spoken French often uses celui-là for both 'this one' and 'that one', with -ci reserved for explicit contrast. Both are correct; -ci is more common in writing.
Astuces & mémo
- Before writing celui/celle/ceux/celles, ask two questions: what gender/number is the noun I'm replacing, and what will follow (-ci/-là, de, or qui/que)?
- -ci points to what's nearer (this one), -là to what's further (that one) — the same logic as ce livre-ci / ce livre-là.
- celui de is extremely useful for possession — it's how you say 'my brother's', 'Marie's', 'the one from Paris'.
Step 3 of 6
3Q&A drill
Match the form
Match each noun to the demonstrative pronoun that replaces it.
- Q1le livre (masc. sing.)A____________
- Q2la voiture (fem. sing.)A____________
- Q3les étudiants (masc. pl.)A____________
- Q4les photos (fem. pl.)A____________
Step 4 of 6
4Fill the blanks
Guided practice — choose the pronoun
Complete with celui, celle, ceux or celles.
Example
Quel livre ? (1)-ci ou (1)-là ?
→ Celui-ci ou celui-là ?
Exercice
Ma voiture est vieille ; (1) de mon frère est neuve.
Exercice
(2) qui travaillent réussissent.
Answer pool — drag onto a blank (or tap to fill the next one)
Next empty blank: 1
Step 5 of 6
5Word order
Build the sentence
Put the words in the correct order.
Example
celui-cipréfèreje→Je préfère celui-ci.
- Sentence 1Tap the words below to build the sentence.
- Sentence 2Tap the words below to build the sentence.
Step 6 of 6
6Speak freely
Produce it
Compare two objects using celui-ci/celui-là, and describe something belonging to someone using celui de.
Ex.J'ai deux téléphones : celui-ci est plus rapide que celui-là. Mon appartement est petit, mais celui de ma sœur est très grand.
- 1.Comparez deux objets que vous possédez (celui-ci / celui-là).
- 2.Comparez votre maison avec celle de quelqu'un d'autre.
- 3.Quels sont les gens qui réussissent, selon vous ? (utilisez ceux qui)