Это, Этот, Тот, Такой: Pointing and Identifying | Russian Grammar

English points with two small words — "this" and "that" — and adds "such" for kinds. Russian uses a richer system that does not line up one-to-one, and the mismatch produces some of the most persistent intermediate errors. There are really four jobs here: identifying what something is (Э́то кни́га "This is a book"), specifying which noun you mean (э́та кни́га "this book"), contrasting the far or other one (тот "that one"), and naming a kind (тако́й "such a / that kind"). This page is a single flowchart that routes any "this / that / such" through to the right Russian word — and disarms the trap at the centre of it all: the two different words spelled э́то.

The flowchart

Ask these questions in order and stop at the first "yes."

Ask…	If yes →	Example
Am I saying what something is ("this/that is…")?	frozen э́то (never changes)	Э́то кни́га.
Am I pointing at this particular noun (near)?	agreeing э́тот / э́та / э́то / э́ти	э́та кни́га
Do I mean that one / the other / the aforementioned?	тот / та / то / те	тот челове́к
Do I mean a kind of thing ("such a / that sort")?	тако́й / така́я / тако́е / таки́е	тако́й шум

The order matters: question 1 catches the frozen presentational э́то before you ever try to make it agree, which is exactly the step that derails learners.

Step 1: Saying what something IS → frozen э́то

If the English is "this is / that is / these are / it is" — you are identifying or presenting — use э́то, which is invariable. It does not change for gender, number, or case. The noun after it stands in the nominative; э́то itself takes no ending. Russian drops the present-tense "is," so this one frozen word carries the whole identifying sentence. Full detail on э́то as a universal pointer.

Э́то мой ста́рший брат, а э́то — на́ши соба́ки.

This is my older brother, and these are our dogs. — one frozen э́то for a masculine person and one for a plural, unchanged.

— Что э́то у тебя́ в рука́х? — Э́то пода́рок для ма́мы.

— What's that in your hands? — It's a present for mum. — frozen э́то in both question and answer.

💡

The test: can you put "is / are" into the English ("This is a book")? Then it is the frozen presentational э́то — it never changes, even before a feminine or plural noun (Э́то моя́ сестра́, Э́то кни́ги). This is the single most useful reflex for the whole topic.

Step 2: THIS particular noun (near) → agreeing э́тот/э́та/э́то/э́ти

If you are not saying what something is but pinning down which near noun you mean — "this book," "this house" — use the agreeing demonstrative э́тот/э́та/э́то/э́ти. It behaves like an adjective: it matches its noun in gender, number, and case, and it declines (э́того, э́той, э́тим, об э́том). The full paradigm is on demonstratives э́тот and тот.

Э́тот фильм я уже́ ви́дел, дава́й посмо́трим друго́й.

I've already seen this film, let's watch a different one. — agreeing э́тот + masculine фильм: 'this film'.

Я никогда́ не была́ в э́том го́роде ра́ньше.

I've never been to this city before. — after в (location) the demonstrative takes the prepositional too: в э́том го́роде.

The neuter slot of this paradigm is also spelled э́то — and that homograph is the whole trap (see below): э́то окно́ ("this window") is the agreeing э́то, not the frozen presentational one.

Step 3: THAT one / the other / the aforementioned → тот

Тот/та/то/те is the "far" or "other" pointer — "that one over there," "the other," "the one I mentioned." It contrasts with э́тот, declines the same way, and anchors a cluster of fixed phrases. Use it whenever you mean not this one, but the other, or refer back to something already named.

Не э́тот сви́тер, а тот, кра́сный, на ве́рхней по́лке.

Not this sweater, the other one, the red one on the top shelf. — explicit contrast не э́тот… а тот.

В тот ве́чер мы засиде́лись до утра́.

That evening we stayed up till morning. — тот for the aforementioned / removed-in-time one (в тот ве́чер).

A few high-frequency тот phrases worth recognising as units:

тот же (са́мый) — "the same (very one)": в том же до́ме ("in the same building").
тот, кто / то, что — "the one who / the thing that": То, что ты сказа́л, ва́жно ("What you said is important").
не тот — "the wrong one": Ты набра́л не тот но́мер ("You dialled the wrong number").

Извини́те, я, ка́жется, сел не на тот авто́бус.

Sorry, I think I got on the wrong bus. — не тот = 'the wrong one'.

Step 4: A KIND of thing → тако́й

If "this / that / such" really means a kind / a sort / this much — intensity or type rather than a specific object — use тако́й/така́я/тако́е/таки́е. It means "such a / that kind of" before a noun (or a long adjective + noun) and declines to agree. The companion adverb так ("so") handles short adjectives and adverbs; the full split is on такой and так.

Я не ожида́л тако́го прия́тного сюрпри́за.

I didn't expect such a pleasant surprise. — тако́го + genitive: 'such a' = a kind/degree, agreeing.

Где ты нашёл таки́е удо́бные кре́сла?

Where did you find such comfortable armchairs? — таки́е agreeing with plural кре́сла.

Add же for "the same kind of" — comparing type, not literal identity (for "the very same one," that is тот же):

Хочу́ таку́ю же ку́ртку, как у тебя́.

I want the same kind of jacket as yours. — таку́ю же = 'the same sort of', agreeing.

The central trap: the two э́то

Almost every error in this whole area comes from one homograph. There are two different words spelled э́то:

Russian	Which word	English
Э́то окно́ не закрыва́ется.	agreeing neuter demonstrative (declines)	This window won't close. (a noun phrase 'this window')
Э́то — окно́, а не дверь.	frozen presentational (invariable)	This is a window, not a door. (an identifying sentence)

They look identical but do opposite jobs: the frozen one makes a sentence ("this is X") and never changes; the agreeing one modifies a neuter noun ("this window") and switches to э́тот/э́та/э́ти for other genders and declines for case. The reason learners try to make the presentational э́то agree is that Russian drops "is," so there is no verb to carry the sentence — э́то feels like it should match the noun. It must not.

Э́то моя́ ко́мната, и э́та ко́мната са́мая све́тлая в кварти́ре.

This is my room, and this room is the lightest in the flat. — first Э́то = frozen 'this is'; second э́та = agreeing demonstrative before feminine ко́мната.

Common Mistakes

❌ Э́та моя́ маши́на. (meaning 'This is my car')

Wrong — the identifying 'this is' is the frozen, invariable э́то, not the agreeing э́та.

✅ Э́то моя́ маши́на.

This is my car. — frozen presentational э́то.

❌ Э́ти студе́нты из Кита́я. (meaning 'These are students from China')

Wrong if you mean to identify them — presentational frozen Э́то is needed. Э́ти would make it the phrase 'these students' (then the sentence needs more).

✅ Э́то студе́нты из Кита́я.

These are students from China. — frozen Э́то identifies a plural group.

❌ Я живу́ в э́тот до́ме.

Wrong — after в (location) the agreeing demonstrative takes the prepositional: в э́том до́ме.

✅ Я живу́ в э́том до́ме.

I live in this house. — agreeing э́том + до́ме, prepositional.

❌ Не дава́й мне э́тот сове́т, дай мне э́тот, друго́й.

Confused contrast — 'the other one' is тот, not a second э́тот: не э́тот, а тот.

✅ Не э́тот сове́т, а тот.

Not this advice, but that one. — э́тот (near) vs тот (the other).

❌ Я не ви́дел так большо́й соба́ки. (meaning 'such a big dog')

Wrong — before a long adjective + noun you need тако́й, not так: тако́й большо́й соба́ки.

✅ Я не ви́дел тако́й большо́й соба́ки.

I've never seen such a big dog. — тако́й = a kind/degree, agreeing.

Key Takeaways

Frozen э́то = "this / that is…" — identifying or presenting; invariable (Э́то кни́га, Э́то мои́ друзья́).
Agreeing э́тот/э́та/э́то/э́ти = "this [noun]" — modifies and declines (э́та кни́га, в э́том до́ме).
тот/та/то/те = "that one / the other / the aforementioned," and anchors тот же, тот кто, не тот.
тако́й/така́я/тако́е/таки́е = "such a / that kind of," declining; тако́й же = "the same kind of."
The central trap is the two э́то: frozen presentational (a sentence, never changes) vs agreeing neuter demonstrative (a noun phrase, declines). Test with "is/are" — if it fits, the word is frozen.

Now practice Russian

Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.

Start learning Russian→