Spanish word

este

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈeste/

Meaning

  • adjectivethis

Example

Mira este libro.

Look at this book.

Illustration for este (this)

More examples

¿Has leído este libro?

Have you read this book?

Core concept

A person pointing at an object close to them.

Common phrases

  • este libro

    this book

  • este año

    this year

  • este fin de semana

    this weekend

Similar words

ese: Object a short distance from the speaker, visible but not within immediate reach.
aquel: Object far from both speaker and listener, situated across a noticeable distance.

Definition in Spanish

Acompaña al nombre para señalar algo cercano al hablante; también puede sustituir al nombre funcionando como pronombre en contextos informales.

Word origin

From Latin iste via medieval Spanish, este developed as the proximal demonstrative and formed gender and number variants (esta, estos, estas) to agree with the noun.

Usage tips

  • Este marks items in the speaker's immediate space; for something nearer the listener use ese, and for something far away use aquel.

Other meanings

  • this onepronoun

Opposites

  • esethatadjective
  • aquelthat over thereadjective

Word lists with this word