Noriこれ, それ, あれ: this, that, and over there
これ それ あれ is distance, not a translation puzzle.
これ — near the speaker. The pen in your hand. それ — near the listener. The bag by their chair. あれ — away from both. The sign across the street.
English "that" covers それ and あれ. That's why beginners freeze. Stop translating. Point. If it's in your space, これ. Their space, それ. Nobody's space, あれ.
The polite sentence is simple: これは ペンです. This is a pen. Same は / です skeleton you already know.
Practice this in five minutes, not another Anki deck.
Nori is a beginner Japanese app with tiny grammar quizzes and a waitlist before launch.
Don't start この / その / あの until これ / それ / あれ is automatic. Those attach to a noun. These stand alone. One job at a time.
Walk around your room and label three things out loud. That's the whole demonstrative lesson.
これ is near you. それ is near the other person. あれ is far from both. Point with your hands the first week. The words stick to distance, not to English 'this/that.'
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