Demonstrative Pronouns
Latin's demonstratives are a tiny family with a huge job: they tell you where something stands in relation to the speaker, the listener, or the conversation.
Hic, haec, hoc is "this near me." Iste, ista, istud is "that near you" — and in oratory it usually drips with contempt.
Ille, illa, illud is "that over there," or, when it follows its noun, "that famous one." Is, ea, id is the colorless workhorse that doubles as Latin's third-person pronoun.
They work two ways: as adjectives modifying a noun (hic vir — "this man") or as standalone pronouns (hic dīxit — "this one said").
The forms are irregular but high-frequency: drill the genitive in -īus and dative in -ī, and you'll meet these on every Caesar page.
The big trap is the hic ... ille pairing — Latin reverses English: hic is "the latter," ille is "the former."
Three points of view (speaker / addressee / remote) plus a colorless workhorse that doubles as the 3rd-person pronoun.
All four share the irregular pronominal genitive -īus and dative -ī. Add īdem (= is + dem) for "the same" and ipse for the intensive "self."
| Case | M. Sg. | F. Sg. | N. Sg. | M. Pl. | F. Pl. | N. Pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | hic | haec | hoc | hī | hae | haec |
| Gen. | huius | huius | huius | hōrum | hārum | hōrum |
| Dat. | huic | huic | huic | hīs | hīs | hīs |
| Acc. | hunc | hanc | hoc | hōs | hās | haec |
| Abl. | hōc | hāc | hōc | hīs | hīs | hīs |
| Case | M. Sg. | F. Sg. | N. Sg. | M. Pl. | F. Pl. | N. Pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | ille | illa | illud | illī | illae | illa |
| Gen. | illīus | illīus | illīus | illōrum | illārum | illōrum |
| Dat. | illī | illī | illī | illīs | illīs | illīs |
| Acc. | illum | illam | illud | illōs | illās | illa |
| Abl. | illō | illā | illō | illīs | illīs | illīs |
| Case | M. Sg. | F. Sg. | N. Sg. | M. Pl. | F. Pl. | N. Pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | iste | ista | istud | istī | istae | ista |
| Gen. | istīus | istīus | istīus | istōrum | istārum | istōrum |
| Dat. | istī | istī | istī | istīs | istīs | istīs |
| Acc. | istum | istam | istud | istōs | istās | ista |
| Abl. | istō | istā | istō | istīs | istīs | istīs |
| Case | M. Sg. | F. Sg. | N. Sg. | M. Pl. | F. Pl. | N. Pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | is | ea | id | eī (iī) | eae | ea |
| Gen. | ēius | ēius | ēius | eōrum | eārum | eōrum |
| Dat. | eī | eī | eī | eīs (iīs) | eīs | eīs |
| Acc. | eum | eam | id | eōs | eās | ea |
| Abl. | eō | eā | eō | eīs (iīs) | eīs | eīs |
| Case | M. Sg. | F. Sg. | N. Sg. | M. Pl. | F. Pl. | N. Pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nom. | īdem | eadem | idem | eīdem | eaedem | eadem |
| Gen. | ēiusdem | ēiusdem | ēiusdem | eōrundem | eārundem | eōrundem |
| Dat. | eīdem | eīdem | eīdem | eīsdem | eīsdem | eīsdem |
| Acc. | eundem | eandem | idem | eōsdem | eāsdem | eadem |
| Abl. | eōdem | eādem | eōdem | eīsdem | eīsdem | eīsdem |
See It In Action
— B. G. i. 13
Caesar uses hōc in an ablative absolute to point back to the battle just narrated — hic in its discourse role: "this thing we just told you about."
— Cic. Cat. i. 1
Iste is the demonstrative of the second person — Cicero is pointing AT Catiline. Combined with tuus, it becomes contemptuous: "that wretched rage of YOURS."
— B. G. i. 21
Three demonstratives in one sentence: ipse (Caesar himself, intensive), eōdem (the SAME road — īdem), and eōs (them — is). Caesar leans on these every chapter.
— Verg. Aen. i. 139
Vergil uses ille alone, substantively, to mark Aeolus as the distant, larger-than-life figure. Ille often carries this epic weight — "he, the famous one."
"this / these" — or, in pairs, "the latter"
hōc proeliō factō = "after this battle was fought"
"that of yours" — usually with negative tone in oratory
furor iste tuus = "that rage of yours" (contemptuous)
"that / those" — or, after its noun, "the famous, the well-known"
Alexander ille = "that famous Alexander"
"he / she / it / they" — or, with relative, "the one who…"
eum cōnsulem quī nōn dubitet = "a consul who will not hesitate"
"the same" — often rendered as an adverb: "also, too, at the same time"
ōrātiō splendida et eadem facēta = "a brilliant and ALSO witty speech"
"X himself / the very X / X in person" — never reflexive
id ipsum = "that very thing"; Caesar ipse = "Caesar himself"
When Latin lists two things and refers back with hic ... ille, English speakers consistently get the order backwards.
the one mentioned MORE recently (closer in the text)
hic dīcit, ille tacet
the latter speaks, the former is silent
the one mentioned EARLIER (further back in the text)
Cicerō et Caesar: hic ... ille
Cicero and Caesar: the latter (Caesar) ... the former (Cicero)
Tip: Ask: which Latin word means "near"? hic = near = recent = latter. The spatial metaphor is the whole rule.
In Cicero's quam diū etiam furor iste tuus nōs ēlūdet?, why does Cicero choose iste over ille or hic?
Study Tips
- •Anchor each pronoun to a person: hic = "by me," iste = "by you," ille = "over there or famous," is = "the one we just mentioned." Distance is the whole system.
- •Memorize the genitive -īus and dative -ī once (huius/huic, illīus/illī, ēius/eī) — it's the same shape across every demonstrative and pronominal adjective.
- •When you see iste in a Cicero speech, read it as a sneer until proven otherwise. Furor iste tuus = "that rage of yours" with full venom.
- •For hic ... ille pairs, train yourself to flip: hic = the LATTER (closer in the text), ille = the FORMER (further back). It's the opposite of English instinct.