Aquí, Ací, Allí, and Allà | Catalan Grammar

Catalan demonstrative adverbs locate something relative to the conversation: aquí “here,” regional ací “here,” and allí/allà “there.” Their job is deictic: the correct form depends on where the speaker, listener, and intended place are imagined to be.

These words are adverbs, not determiners. They never agree in gender or number; agreement belongs to any noun phrase that accompanies them.

For the agreeing noun-phrase forms beside them, see Basic Demonstratives.

Two regional systems

System	Speaker's area	Listener's or intermediate area	Distant area
Central and many other varieties: binary	aquí (near or shared area)		allí / allà
Valencian and much of the Franja: ternary tradition	ací	aquí (careful or literary) / ahí (widespread colloquial Valencian)	allí / allà

In the widespread binary system, aquí covers the space of the speaker, the listener, or both when that space is treated as near. In the traditional Valencian system, ací marks the speaker's area, aquí can mark the listener's or an intermediate area in careful or literary usage, and allí/allà marks distance. Actual Valencian speech varies: ahí is widespread for the middle term, and some speakers also use aquí with near-speaker value.

Deixa la jaqueta aquí, damunt d'aquesta cadira.

Leave the jacket here, on this chair. (Central)

Deixa la jaqueta ací, damunt d'esta cadira.

Leave the jacket here, on this chair. (Valencian)

The noun phrases show the matching regional demonstratives: Central aquesta cadira and Valencian esta cadira. The adverbs themselves remain invariant regardless of what is located.

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Choose a regional deictic system, not isolated “synonyms.” Central aquí–allí/allà is usually binary; traditional Valencian ací–aquí–allí/allà is three-way, with colloquial ahí often occupying the middle slot.

Aquí in the Central baseline

Use aquí for a place treated as near the conversational center. It can mean “right where I am,” “where you are,” or “in this shared place.” Gesture and context settle the exact radius.

Aquí hi ha una taula lliure; podem seure-hi tots quatre.

There's a free table here; all four of us can sit at it.

Tens els documents aquí, al costat de les carpetes blaves.

You have the documents here, next to the blue folders.

The first sentence may refer to the speaker's café, an area in view, or a point on a map. English here is similarly flexible, but do not assume that Spanish aquí fixes the Catalan system: a Valencian speaker normally uses ací for this function.

Ací in Valencian and the Franja

(regional: Valencian and the Franja) Ací marks proximity to the speaker. It is fully standard and particularly important in careful Valencian speech and writing.

Ací treballem amb eines noves i materials reciclats.

Here we work with new tools and recycled materials. (Valencian)

The colloquial form ahí is widespread in Valencian for a listener-side or intermediate area (informal, regional: Valencian), while Northwestern astí has a comparable local use (informal, regional: Northwestern). Both are normally avoided in formal general writing.

The historical three-way distinction ací “by me,” aquí “by you,” allí/allà “far from us” survives imperfectly and not identically everywhere. Modern learners should follow the living system of the variety they are using rather than force every location into a reconstructed three-box chart.

Place adverbs versus això and allò

Do not confuse an answer to “where?” with a pronoun meaning “this/that thing or idea.” Aquí/ací/allí/allà locate something and are adverbs; Central això/allò stand for a thing, situation, or proposition. The two types can occur together:

Això d'aquí és per a tu; allò d'allà ho guardarem per a demà.

This thing here is for you; we'll keep that thing over there for tomorrow. (Central)

Traditional Valencian aligns a three-way pronominal series with its place system: açò near the speaker, això near the listener or in the middle sphere, and allò at a distance. These pronouns are invariable, but they are not alternative spellings of the place adverbs.

Açò d'ací és meu; això d'aquí és teu.

This thing by me is mine; that thing by you is yours. (traditional Valencian contrast)

Allí and allà: point versus area

In many varieties allí and allà overlap. Where speakers maintain a nuance, allí favors a more precise point, while allà favors a broader, vaguer, or more directional area.

Les claus són allí, just al costat del gerro verd.

The keys are there, right beside the green vase.

Allà hi ha pobles petits i muntanyes molt altes.

Over there there are small villages and very high mountains.

The contrast is context-sensitive, not absolute. A speaker pointing at one exact shelf may prefer allí; a speaker waving toward a valley naturally chooses allà. Other varieties use one form much more generally, so neither word guarantees mathematical precision.

Deixa els paquets allí; després portarem les caixes grosses allà baix.

Leave the packages there; afterward we'll take the large boxes down there.

Allà is especially natural with dalt/baix and with directional or approximate expressions: allà dalt, allà baix, cap allà, per allà. A relative clause shows the same tendency: allí on tu ja saps can evoke a known point, while allà on hi ha aigua means a general place satisfying the description.

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Use allí as a good default for an indicated point and allà for a zone or direction, but expect overlap. Regional preference is stronger than any rigid dictionary distinction.

Prepositions and movement

The basic adverbs already express location, so Catalan normally says vine aquí, seu allí, not vine a aquí. Other prepositions add origin, route, limit, or direction:

Relation	Forms	Example
origin	d'aquí, d'allí, d'allà	Marxem d'aquí.
route/area	per aquí, per allà	Passa per aquí.
limit	fins aquí, fins allà	Arriba fins allà.
direction	cap aquí, cap allà	Vine cap aquí.

Before these a- adverbs, directional cap a reduces to cap: cap aquí, cap allí, cap allà. This is why cap a allà is not the standard form.

Vine cap aquí amb les dues bosses petites i deixa-les per allà.

Come this way with the two small bags and leave them somewhere over there.

Discourse uses beyond physical pointing

Spatial viewpoint extends naturally into conversation and text. Aquí tens... presents something to the listener; fins aquí marks a boundary in an explanation; d'aquí a... measures time forward from now; aquí el problema és... focuses the present stage of an argument.

Aquí tens les entrades; fins aquí tot ha anat bé.

Here are the tickets; up to this point everything has gone well.

D'aquí a dues setmanes presentarem els resultats definitius.

Two weeks from now we'll present the final results.

These are not random idioms. Each treats the present conversational moment or textual point as a metaphorical place.

Adverbs do not agree

Aquí, ací, allí, and allà have no masculine, feminine, or plural forms. The surrounding demonstrative or adjective does agree:

Aquí tens aquest mapa antic i aquestes fotografies noves.

Here you have this old map and these new photographs.

Do not invent aquís for several places or allana for a feminine noun. English invariability happens to match the adverbs, but not the demonstrative noun phrases beside them.

Common Mistakes

1. Omitting the written accent.

❌ Deixa la motxilla aqui.

Incorrect — aquí carries an acute accent.

✅ Deixa la motxilla aquí.

Leave the backpack here.

2. Adding an unnecessary a before a static demonstrative adverb.

❌ Vine a aquí i seu a allí.

Incorrect — aquí and allí function directly as place adverbs.

✅ Vine aquí i seu allí.

Come here and sit there.

3. Keeping a in cap a before allà.

❌ Les ovelles corren cap a allà.

Incorrect — cap a reduces to cap before an a-initial demonstrative adverb.

✅ Les ovelles corren cap allà.

The sheep are running that way.

4. Making an adverb agree with a plural phrase.

❌ Les caixes grosses són allàs baixes.

Incorrect — allà is invariant; only grosses agrees with caixes.

✅ Les caixes grosses són allà baix.

The large boxes are down there.

Key Takeaways

Central Catalan normally contrasts near aquí with distant allí/allà; Valencian and much of the Franja use near-speaker ací. Allí may favor a point and allà a zone or direction, but regional overlap is substantial. These adverbs never agree. Use combinations such as d'aquí, per allà, and cap allà, and keep one regional deictic system coherent throughout the exchange.

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