English divides the world of pointing into two: this (near) and that (far). Finnish divides it into three — tämä, tuo and se — and the third one is exactly the one English speakers keep dropping. This page is the decision rule for picking the right demonstrative; it shows the declension only enough to keep you moving and links out to the full paradigm for the rest.
The one decision: three distances, not two
Ask where the thing sits relative to the two people talking, and whether you can point at it:
- tämä — near me, the speaker. In my hand, on my side of the table. → this
- tuo — away from both of us, but visible and pointable. Across the street, over there. → that (over there)
- se — near you (the hearer), already mentioned, or out of sight. The thing we were just talking about. → that, it
Tämä on minun, tuo on sinun.
This one is mine, that one over there is yours. (tämä near me, tuo pointed at)
Muistatko sen illan Helsingissä?
Do you remember that evening in Helsinki? (se — a shared memory, nothing to point at)
The split that trips up English speakers is tuo vs se, because both land on English that. Use tuo only when you could literally raise a finger and point; use se for the thing that is known from context but not in view.
Mikä tuo rakennus tuolla on?
What's that building over there? (visible → tuo)
Kuka sen sanoi?
Who said that? (the thing already said, not in sight → se)
They point at your own things too
tämä is not only for objects touching you — it covers whatever is in your immediate zone, including the coffee in front of you or the idea you're presenting right now.
Tämä kahvi on aivan liian kuumaa.
This coffee is way too hot. (the cup in front of me)
En pidä tästä väristä, mutta tuo on kaunis.
I don't like this colour, but that one is pretty. (tästä = 'of this', elative of tämä; tuo pointed at)
They decline — a survival table
Demonstratives take case endings like any other word, and they change stem when they do. Here are the four forms you meet first. Notice the stems: tämä works off tä-/tämä-, tuo off tuo-, and se off a completely different si- stem.
| Case | tämä (this) | tuo (that, there) | se (that, it) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative (subject) | tämä | tuo | se |
| Genitive (of / 's) | tämän | tuon | sen |
| Partitive (object) | tätä | tuota | sitä |
| Inessive (in) | tässä | tuossa | siinä |
| Illative (into) | tähän | tuohon | siihen |
| Adessive (on / with) | tällä | tuolla | sillä |
Laita avaimet tähän.
Put the keys here (into this). (tähän = illative of tämä)
Istu tuohon tuoliin.
Sit in that chair over there. (tuohon = illative of tuo)
Mitä sinä teit sillä rahalla?
What did you do with that money? (sillä = adessive of se, 'with that')
se also means 'it'
The reason se feels so different is that it is doing a second job: it is Finnish's ordinary word for it. Spoken Finnish even uses se for he/she about people (where the standard language wants hän). That overlap is a topic of its own — see se vs hän — but for now just note that the same little word covers both "that (known)" and "it."
Ostin uuden puhelimen, ja se on tosi nopea.
I bought a new phone, and it's really fast. (se = it)
The plurals: nämä, nuo, ne
Each demonstrative has its own plural, and the same three-way logic holds: nämä (these, near me), nuo (those over there, pointable), ne (those / them, known or out of sight). ne is also the plural pronoun they/them for things.
Nämä kengät ovat liian pienet.
These shoes are too small. (nämä — on my feet / in my hands)
Näetkö nuo linnut puussa?
Do you see those birds in the tree? (nuo — visible, pointed at)
Ne olivat parhaat lomat ikinä.
Those were the best holidays ever. (ne — a shared memory)
Common Mistakes
❌ Muistatko tuon elokuvan, josta puhuimme?
Odd — a film you discussed isn't in view, so use se, not tuo.
✅ Muistatko sen elokuvan, josta puhuimme?
Do you remember that film we talked about?
❌ Kuka tämä mies tuolla on?
Wrong distance — a man across the room isn't near you, so tuo, not tämä.
✅ Kuka tuo mies tuolla on?
Who is that man over there?
❌ Anna minulle se kirja pöydällä.
If you're pointing at a specific visible book, tuo is more natural than se.
✅ Anna minulle tuo kirja pöydällä.
Pass me that book on the table.
❌ Asun tämässä talossa.
Wrong stem — the inessive of tämä is tässä, not *tämässä.
✅ Asun tässä talossa.
I live in this house.
❌ Laita ne tuossa.
Location vs motion confusion — putting something into a spot needs the illative tuohon.
✅ Laita ne tuohon.
Put them there (into that spot).
Key Takeaways
- Finnish has three demonstratives where English has two: tämä (near me), tuo (over there, pointable), se (known, mentioned, or out of sight).
- The hard split is tuo vs se: point at it → tuo; know it from context → se.
- se doubles as the pronoun it (and, colloquially, he/she for people).
- They decline off three different stems — tä-, tuo-, si- — so tässä / tuossa / siinä, tähän / tuohon / siihen.
- Plurals mirror the singulars: nämä / nuo / ne, with ne also meaning they/them.
Now practice Finnish
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Finnish→Related Topics
- tämä, tuo, seA1 — Finnish has a three-way demonstrative system — tämä (this), tuo (that, by you), se (it/that, known) — plus plurals nämä, nuo, ne.
- Declining Demonstratives: tämä, tuo, seB1 — The irregular case stems of tämä, tuo, se and the plurals nämä, nuo, ne — including the notorious si-/sii- stem of se.
- se vs hänA2 — The quick decision: use hän for a person in writing and formal speech, se in ordinary conversation — a register choice, not a meaning one.
- The Here/There System: tässä, siinä, tuossaA2 — Finnish has a second here/there series built on the demonstratives tämä/se/tuo — tässä (this exact spot) versus täällä (this whole area).