Dialogue
Celui-ci or celui-là? Choose clothes without repeating the noun
Practise celui-ci, celle-là, ceux-ci and celles-là in a clothes-shop dialogue. Eight forms, four picture cards and three questions with clear pointing cues.
- B1
- 10 lines
- Practice mode
- Learn this in the B1 notebook →
In short
Celui-ci means “this one” for a masculine singular noun; celui-là means “that one”. Match the noun first: celle for feminine singular, ceux for masculine plural and celles for feminine plural. A gesture or the conversation tells your listener which item you mean.
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| Understood noun | This one / these ones | That one / those ones |
|---|---|---|
| le manteau | celui-ci | celui-là |
| la veste | celle-ci | celle-là |
| les pantalons | ceux-ci | ceux-là |
| les chaussures | celles-ci | celles-là |
Four things to point to
Find:
At the rail: point, compare, try on
You are choosing a jacket. The sales assistant holds a blue cotton jacket close to you and points to a cream wool jacket farther along the rail. In practice mode, use the English cues to rebuild your lines. The cues name the item and the pointing choice.
- Vendeuse
Bonjour ! Vous cherchez une veste ?
English
Hello! Are you looking for a jacket?
- Vous
Oui. J’hésite entre ces deux vestes.
Say you cannot decide between these two jackets.
English
Yes. I can’t decide between these two jackets.
- Vendeuse
Celle-ci est en coton. Celle-là est en laine.
English
This one is cotton. That one is wool.
- Vous
Je peux essayer celle-ci, la bleue ?
Ask to try this one: the blue jacket held close to you.
English
Can I try this one, the blue one?
- Vendeuse
Bien sûr. Vous cherchez aussi un pantalon ?
English
Of course. Are you also looking for a pair of trousers?
- Vous
Oui. Celui-là, le noir, existe en taille quarante ?
Ask whether that one, the black pair of trousers farther away, comes in size forty.
English
Yes. Does that one, the black pair, come in size forty?
- Vendeuse
Oui. Et pour les chaussures, vous préférez quelle paire ?
English
Yes. And for the shoes, which pair do you prefer?
- Vous
Je préfère celles-ci, juste devant moi.
Point to the shoes right in front of you: say you prefer these ones.
English
I prefer these ones, right in front of me.
- Vendeuse
Très bien. Vous voulez essayer la veste en laine aussi ?
English
Very good. Would you like to try the wool jacket too?
- Vous
Oui, je vais essayer celle-là aussi.
Say you will try that jacket too: the cream wool one farther along the rail.
English
Yes, I’ll try that one too.
When do you use celui-ci instead of repeating the noun?
cette veste-cithis jacket
Focus: The noun is still present.
cette + noun + -ci
Cette veste-ci est légère.
This jacket is light.
celle-cithis one
Focus: The feminine noun is understood.
celle + -ci
Celle-ci est légère.
This one is light.
Keep the hyphen and the accent: celle-là, ceux-là. The noun controls agreement even when a different person points to it. In conversation, -là also selects something just mentioned; pointing makes the choice clear. With two antecedents in formal writing, celui-ci can pick up the latter and celui-là the former.