The practical diagnostic is inside the speaker’s current attention-space or outside it? Choose singular wannan (or plural waɗannan) for a near, present, newly selected, or discourse-current referent. Choose masculine singular wancan, feminine singular waccan, or plural waɗancan for something physically farther away, contrasted with the current item, or kept at greater discourse distance.
English this/that is a useful first approximation, but Hausa also marks gender in the far singular and lets discourse distance override literal meters. All unlabelled examples are (neutral Nigerian Standard Hausa).
The smallest physical contrast
When two objects are visible, the near/far distinction is concrete.
Ka ɗauko mini wannan littafin da ke gabana.
Bring me this book that is in front of me. (addressing one male; near the speaker)
Ka ɗauko mini wancan littafin da ke kan ɗayan teburin.
Bring me that book on the other table. (addressing one male; farther away)
Only the demonstrative changes. Wannan puts the first book in the speaker’s immediate deictic center; wancan directs attention outward to the other book.
With a feminine noun, far singular agreement is visible:
Ki buɗe wannan ƙofa kusa da ke.
Open this door near you. (addressing one female)
Ki rufe waccan ƙofa a ƙarshen zauren.
Close that door at the end of the hall. (addressing one female)
Near singular wannan serves both masculine and feminine nouns. Far singular splits into wancan for masculine and waccan for feminine. Plural uses waɗannan near and waɗancan far regardless of the singular gender.
| Reference | Near | Far |
|---|---|---|
| masculine singular | wannan gida | wancan gida |
| feminine singular | wannan mota | waccan mota |
| plural | waɗannan gidaje / motoci | waɗancan gidaje / motoci |
Number is part of the choice
Do not use singular wannan/wancan with a plural noun merely because English that is sometimes vague in rapid speech.
Waɗannan takardu sun isa; kada ku sake bugawa.
These documents are enough; do not print more. (near/current plural)
Waɗancan takardu na bara za a kai ma’ajiyar bayanai.
Those documents from last year will be taken to the archive. (far/non-current plural)
The plural form contains ɗ, which must remain in standard boko spelling. Wadannan and wadancan without the hooked letter are orthographic errors.
Distance can be conversational, not physical
A referent just introduced and still central can take a near demonstrative even when it is not physically near. A referent from an earlier episode, an alternative the speaker rejects, or an idea treated as removed can take a far demonstrative.
Na karanta wani sabon rahoto. Wannan rahoto ya bayyana matsalar sosai.
I read a new report. This report explains the problem clearly. (newly current in discourse)
Mun tattauna rahoton bara; wancan rahoto bai ƙunshi sababbin bayanai ba.
We discussed last year’s report; that report did not contain the new data. (earlier/distanced referent)
Both reports may be absent from the room. Wannan says “the one I am bringing into our shared focus now”; wancan says “the other, earlier, or more remote one.” The speaker’s information structure matters more than physical distance alone.
The far form can also carry a contrastive or distancing implication, but it does not automatically express dislike.
Wannan shawara ta dace da bukatunmu, amma waccan shawara tana buƙatar ƙarin kuɗi.
This proposal suits our needs, but that proposal requires more money. (two discourse alternatives)
The feminine waccan agrees with shawara. Its role is to distinguish the second proposal; any negative evaluation comes from the rest of the sentence, not from waccan alone.
A diagnostic substitution test
Imagine handing the referent to the listener while saying ga... “here is/are...”. If that presentation makes it the current object under joint attention, the near series is natural. If you still need to redirect the listener to another object or earlier topic, retain the far series.
Ga wannan takarda; ka sa hannu a ƙasa.
Here is this document; sign at the bottom. (addressing one male; joint attention)
Ba wannan takarda ba; waccan da ke hannun sakatariyar nake nufi.
Not this document; I mean that one in the secretary’s hand. (feminine contrast)
The test probes attention, not grammar alone. A speaker can deliberately say waccan about something physically close in order to contrast it with the current selection.
Before the noun and after the noun
Full demonstratives normally precede a bare noun: wannan littafi, waccan mota, waɗannan yara. Hausa also has a common noun-first pattern with short nan/can. In that pattern, the noun bears its linked -n/-r form.
Wannan gida na kawuna ne.
This house belongs to my uncle. (full demonstrative before a plain noun)
Gidan nan na kawuna ne.
This house here belongs to my uncle. (linked noun plus post-noun demonstrative)
Waccan mota ta riga ta tafi.
That car has already left. (full far demonstrative before a plain noun)
Motar can ta riga ta tafi.
That car over there has already left. (linked feminine noun plus can)
The important learner contrast is gida → gidan nan/can, mota → motar nan/can, and plural motoci → motocin nan/can. The attached -n/-r links the head noun to the following demonstrative. It is not an extra word for English the.
Motocin nan na makaranta ne, waɗancan kuwa na asibiti ne.
These cars are the school’s; those, by contrast, are the hospital’s.
The two orders have overlapping reference, but post-noun nan/can often sounds especially natural when the noun is already identifiable and the speaker locates or contrasts it. The full paradigms and distribution belong on near demonstratives and linking before demonstratives.
Agreement remains visible elsewhere
Because wannan itself does not display singular gender, agreement in the rest of the clause may reveal it.
Wannan yaro ne ya kira ki jiya.
It was this boy who called you yesterday. (addressing one female; masculine ne)
Wannan yarinya ce ta kira ki jiya.
It was this girl who called you yesterday. (addressing one female; feminine ce)
Wancan ɗalibi ya amsa, amma waccan ɗaliba ba ta ji tambayar ba.
That male student answered, but that female student did not hear the question.
Do not infer that wannan makes the noun gender-neutral. It merely neutralizes gender in this one demonstrative form; ne/ce, subject–TAM markers, far demonstratives, and other agreement still track the noun.
Demonstratives without an overt noun
In an established visual or conversational context, the demonstrative can stand alone. Gender and number still follow the intended referent.
Wannan ne nake nema, ba wancan ba.
This one is what I am looking for, not that one. (masculine referents)
Waccan ce muka gani a bakin hanya.
That one is the one we saw by the roadside. (feminine referent)
Waɗannan sun yi kyau, amma waɗancan sun fi araha.
These are good, but those are cheaper. (plural referents)
The omitted noun must be recoverable. Hausa does not license a random wannan without a shared referent any more than English licenses unexplained this one.
Mini-dialogue: meters stay constant, attention changes
A: Wace jaka zan ɗauka? B: Ɗauki wannan jakar da muka gama dubawa.
A: Which bag should I take? B: Take this bag that we have just finished examining. (the linker introduces the following relative clause)
A: Wannan ba ta da ƙarfi. B: To, ɗauki waccan jakar da muka ajiye tun farko.
A: This one is not strong. B: Then take that bag that we set aside earlier. (the linker introduces the relative clause; the alternative moves outside current focus)
The bags might be side by side. Wannan tracks the bag presently being evaluated; waccan redirects attention to the earlier alternative. In wannan/waccan jakar da..., -r links jaka to the following relative clause; it is not triggered by the preceding full demonstrative. Choosing the other demonstrative changes which bag the hearer treats as current.
Register
All forms on this page occur in both (informal) conversation and (formal) prose. Spoken Hausa also exploits gesture, gaze, and pronunciation to refine deixis. Ordinary writing uses unmarked nan/can spelling and relies more heavily on context. Do not invent tone marks in ordinary examples to force a distinction that standard boko normally leaves unmarked.
Waɗannan matakai za su fara aiki nan take; waɗancan na biyu za su jira amincewar majalisa.
These measures will take effect immediately; those in the second group will await parliamentary approval. (formal)
Common Mistakes
1. Ignoring feminine agreement in the far singular
❌ Wancan mota ta yi tsada.
Incorrect—mota is feminine, so the far singular demonstrative is waccan.
✅ Waccan mota ta yi tsada.
That car is expensive.
2. Using a singular demonstrative with a plural noun
❌ Wannan yara suna jiran mota.
Incorrect—yara is plural.
✅ Waɗannan yara suna jiran mota.
These children are waiting for a vehicle.
3. Omitting ɗ in the plural form
❌ Wadancan ɗakuna a kulle suke.
Incorrect standard spelling—the plural demonstrative requires ɗ.
✅ Waɗancan ɗakuna a kulle suke.
Those rooms are locked.
4. Omitting the linker before post-noun nan/can
❌ Mota nan ta fi sauri.
Incorrect in the standard linked post-noun pattern.
✅ Motar nan ta fi sauri.
This car is faster.
5. Blending the pre-noun and post-noun frames
❌ Waccan motar ta yi tsada.
Incorrect—the full pre-noun demonstrative requires the plain noun mota.
✅ Waccan mota ta yi tsada.
That car was expensive.
Key Takeaways
- Use wannan for near/current singular reference and waɗannan for near/current plural reference.
- Use wancan with a far masculine singular noun, waccan with a far feminine singular noun, and waɗancan with far plurals.
- Distance includes discourse status: current joint attention favors near forms; an earlier or contrastive alternative can favor far forms.
- Full forms precede nouns; post-noun nan/can require linked nouns such as gidan, motar, motocin.
- Near wannan hides singular gender in its own shape, but agreement elsewhere still reveals gender.
- Never choose from English this/that alone; ask what is physically and conversationally central.
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 Reference in ConversationA1 — Track Hausa referents through pointing, shared attention, prior mention, and speaker perspective without reducing the system to English this and that.
- Linking before DemonstrativesA2 — Form Hausa post-nominal demonstratives with a linked noun before nan or can, and contrast them with full demonstratives before a bare noun.
- Definite versus Demonstrative ReferenceA2 — Distinguish a recoverable Hausa referent in the definite n/r form from the more explicitly pointing meanings of demonstrative noun phrases.
- Gender Agreement beyond the NounA1 — Learn how a Hausa noun's gender controls copulas, demonstratives, definite forms, and genitive linkers across the noun phrase.