Lesson 68: This and that and How Many
We've already used 'this' and 'that' in a number of ways. Time to take a closer look into their varied uses throughout the language.
Now the best hook for remembering this, these, that and those is "tonight".
 Spanish |  English |
|---|---|
| Esta noche | Tonight |
- 'Esta noche' means "this night" ... and "night" is feminine so:
- We add an 's' to get 'esas which means "these [things]".
- We take out the 't' to get 'estas which means "those [things]".
- We add an 's' to get 'eses which mans "those [thing]".
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Esa noche | That night |
| Esas noches | Those nights |
For masculine things we need to remember:
- For singular things we use the 'e' from 'él' - 'ese' / 'este'
- For multiple things we use the 'e' from 'lo / los' - 'esos' / 'estos'
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Este hombre | This man |
| Ese hombre | That man |
| El hombre ese | That man |
| Estos hombres | These men |
| Esos hombres | Those men |
So that covers us for talking about things an objects but what happens when these small words are used in phrases like "I can't believe this?". In this situation should it be feminine or masculine?
Its actually neither, here we have a neutral form - 'Eso' and 'Esto'.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| No creo esto | I don't believe this |
| Nada me gusta más que esto | I don't like anything more than this |
| Nada me gustó más que eso | Nothing please me more than that |
'Tan' - "so"
One of those vital joining words when you want to start putting sentences together as well as to better explain things!
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Estaba tan cansada | I was so tired (female talking) |
| Estábamos tan cansada que dormimos todo el día | We were so tired that we slept all day |
| Estábamos tan cansada cuando llegamos que dormimos todo el día | We were so tired when we arrived that we slept all day |
'Cuantas' / 'Cuantos' - "How many"
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Cuantas veces? | How many times? |
| No sé cuantas veces lo visité | I don't know how many times I visited him |
| No sé cuantas veces lo visitaron | I don't know how many times I visited him |
| No sé cuantas veces la visitaron | I don't know how many times I visited her |