A demonstrative can either sit inside a noun phrase that contains an adjective or serve as the subject of a property statement. Those are different structures. “This big house” is an attributive noun phrase, while “this house is big” is a complete predication. English changes little besides word order; Hausa changes adjective shape, linker placement, and sometimes the demonstrative itself.
The neutral patterns below belong to Nigerian Standard Hausa in both (informal) conversation and (formal) prose. The central rule is simple: build the demonstrative noun phrase first, then decide whether the property is an attributive modifier or the clause predicate.
Two demonstrative frames
Hausa has a full demonstrative before a plain noun and a short demonstrative after a linked noun:
| Reference | Full demonstrative first | Short demonstrative last |
|---|---|---|
| near masculine | wannan gida | gidan nan |
| near feminine | wannan mota | motar nan |
| near plural | waɗannan gidaje | gidajen nan |
| far masculine | wancan gida | gidan can |
| far feminine | waccan mota | motar can |
| far plural | waɗancan motoci | motocin can |
The adjective does not cancel either frame. A pre-nominal adjective carries its ordinary attributive linker, while the noun carries a separate linker before post-nominal nan/can.
For the two frames without adjectives, review Demonstrative Position after the Linked Noun. The same noun linkage remains active when an adjective is added.
Na fi son wannan babban gida saboda yana kusa da kasuwa.
I prefer this big house because it is near the market.
Na fi son babban gidan nan saboda yana kusa da kasuwa.
I prefer this big house because it is near the market.
In wannan babban gida, full wannan precedes the adjective–noun unit babban gida. In babban gidan nan, babban links to gida, and gidan separately links to nan. The two visible -n endings do different jobs; neither is optional.
Adjectives inside a demonstrative noun phrase
A true pre-nominal adjective agrees with the noun and takes -n before a masculine or plural noun and -r before a feminine noun. The full demonstrative also shows distance and, outside near singular wannan, the relevant gender or number.
Wancan sabon shago yana sayar da kayan makaranta.
That new shop sells school supplies.
Waccan sabuwar mota ta iso jiya.
That new car arrived yesterday.
Waɗancan sababbin shaguna suna rufe da yamma.
Those new shops close in the evening.
Wannan dogon layi yana motsawa a hankali.
This long line is moving slowly.
Wannan doguwar hanya tana bi ta bayan asibiti.
This long road goes behind the hospital.
Waɗannan dogayen hanyoyi suna cike da ruwa bayan ruwan sama.
These long roads fill with water after the rain.
Near singular wannan does not visibly distinguish masculine from feminine, but the adjective does: wannan dogon layi versus wannan doguwar hanya. Far singular makes both contrasts visible: wancan sabon shago but waccan sabuwar mota. Plural has one demonstrative series and plural adjective forms.
With the post-nominal frame, the same agreement remains, but nan/can follows the linked noun:
Sabuwar motar nan tana da kujeru bakwai.
This new car has seven seats.
Doguwar hanyar can ta fi wannan sauƙin tafiya.
That long road is easier to travel than this one.
Sababbin shagunan nan suna buɗewa da ƙarfe takwas.
These new shops open at eight o'clock.
This double-linking appearance is genuinely difficult for English speakers. English has separate words this and big with no agreement. Hausa makes the adjective agree with the noun and also gives the noun the linked form required before nan/can.
Demonstrative subject plus predicate adjective
When the demonstrative phrase is the subject, the predicate adjective appears in its free form and takes clause-final ne/ce. It does not carry the attributive linker.
Wannan gida babba ne, amma ɗakuna biyu kawai yake da su.
This house is big, but it has only two rooms.
Wannan mota sabuwa ce, don haka farashinta ya yi tsada.
This car is new, so its price is high.
Waɗannan gidaje sababbi ne, amma ba a gama titin ba.
These houses are new, but the road is not finished.
Waccan hanya doguwa ce; mu bi gajeriyar nan.
That road is long; let's take this short one.
The adjective and copula agree with the Hausa subject. Feminine mota selects sabuwa ce; plural gidaje selects sababbi ne. The demonstrative does not replace that agreement.
Compare the attributive and predicative structures directly:
| Function | Hausa | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| attributive | wannan sabon littafi | linked adjective before noun |
| predicative | wannan littafi sabo ne | free adjective plus copula |
| attributive | waccan farar riga | feminine linked adjective |
| predicative | waccan riga fara ce | feminine free adjective plus ce |
Na sayi wannan sabon littafi ne don ajinmu.
I bought this new book for our class.
Wannan littafi sabo ne, amma na riga na karanta rabinsa.
This book is new, but I have already read half of it.
Standalone demonstratives still control agreement
When the noun is recoverable, a demonstrative can stand alone. Its predicate must still agree with the omitted referent. Near singular wannan is identical for masculine and feminine reference, so the later agreement may be the only overt clue.
Wannan sabo ne; wancan kuwa tsoho ne.
This one is new; that one is old. (masculine referents)
Wannan sabuwa ce; waccan kuwa tsohuwa ce.
This one is new; that one is old. (feminine referents)
Waɗannan sababbi ne; waɗancan tsofaffi ne.
These are new; those are old.
In a shop, the first exchange could concern telephones, the second bags, and the third shoes. The missing noun remains grammatically active. This is why wannan does not license arbitrary masculine agreement simply because its own form is unchanged.
Quality nouns with demonstratives
Many English adjectives correspond to Hausa quality nouns. Such a property takes yana/tana/suna da, not adjective agreement plus ne/ce.
Wannan igiya tana da ƙarfi; za ta iya ɗaure kayan.
This rope is strong; it will be able to secure the load.
Wancan akwatin yana da nauyi sosai.
That box is very heavy.
Waɗannan yara suna da wayo, kuma suna son karatu.
These children are clever, and they like studying.
Inside a noun phrase, quality nouns normally use mai in the singular and masu in the plural:
Ta zaɓi wannan igiya mai ƙarfi.
She chose this strong rope.
Muna neman waɗannan ma’aikata masu basira.
We are looking for these talented workers.
Thus wannan igiya mai ƙarfi is attributive, while wannan igiya tana da ƙarfi is predicative. Do not force ƙarfi into the true-adjective frame merely because English translates both with “strong.”
Practice
Build each phrase or sentence, preserving both demonstrative structure and adjective agreement.
- “that new car” with a full demonstrative: waccan sabuwar mota
- “this long road” with post-nominal nan: doguwar hanyar nan
- “these books are new”: Waɗannan littattafai sababbi ne.
- “this clever girl” with a quality noun: wannan yarinya mai wayo
A cikin motocin nan, waccan baƙar mota ce ta fi araha.
Among these cars, that black car is the cheapest.
Common Mistakes
1. Mixing the two demonstrative frames
❌ wannan babban gidan nan
Incorrect for the basic A2 pattern — it mixes full pre-nominal wannan with post-nominal nan.
✅ wannan babban gida
This big house.
2. Omitting the noun's linker before nan or can
❌ sabuwar mota nan
Incorrect — the noun must be linked before the short demonstrative.
✅ sabuwar motar nan
This new car.
3. Keeping the attributive linker in a predicate
❌ Wannan mota sabuwar ce.
Incorrect as the neutral statement ‘This car is new’ — sabuwar is the linked form used before a noun.
✅ Wannan mota sabuwa ce.
This car is new.
4. Ignoring plural adjective agreement
❌ Waɗannan gidaje sabo ne.
Incorrect — plural gidaje requires plural sababbi.
✅ Waɗannan gidaje sababbi ne.
These houses are new.
Key Takeaways
- Full demonstratives precede a plain noun phrase; short nan/can follows a linked noun.
- A pre-nominal adjective still agrees and takes its linker: waccan sabuwar mota.
- In a property statement, use the free adjective plus ne/ce: Waccan mota sabuwa ce.
- Standalone demonstratives preserve the gender and number of the understood noun.
- Quality nouns take mai/masu attributively and yana/tana/suna da predicatively.
Related Topics
- Near Demonstratives: wannan and waɗannanA1 — Use wannan with a nearby singular referent and waɗannan with nearby plurals, both before nouns and as standalone demonstratives.
- Far Demonstratives: wancan and waɗancanA1 — Use wancan, waccan, and waɗancan for distant or discourse-remote masculine, feminine, and plural referents.
- Demonstrative Position after the Linked NounA1 — Build Hausa post-nominal demonstratives with a linked noun plus nan or can, and keep them distinct from full pre-nominal and standalone forms.
- Core Attributive AdjectivesA1 — Build Hausa noun phrases with the small core of agreeing adjectives, their gender and number forms, and the required pre-nominal linker.
- Predicative Quality with ne and ceA2 — How agreeing Hausa adjectives form present-time quality predicates with clause-final ne and ce.
- Predicative Quality with yana da and tana daA2 — How Hausa describes properties through continuative agreement plus da and a quality noun.