This or this?

There's one thing I don't understand: I know that este is used for masculine nouns and esto for neuter nouns (just like es/eso when the object is further away), but as far as I know, Spanish only has masculine or feminine nouns (with el/la and un/una). So here's my question: what needs to be present for me to use esto/eso? I would really appreciate some help.

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usuariogf
2 years ago

The answer is simple: you then refer to something abstract, so neither male nor female. So to say “that here” (whatever it may be).

If you talk about a person or thing whose grammatical sex you know, you must use este/esta or in the plural estos/estas.

With esto you show that you don’t know or reject it in the sense of What’s that?

verreisterNutzer
2 years ago

I don’t speak Spanish, but I just learn Portuguese.

There is a similar phenomenon with aquele/-a (one, that) and causal for aquilo (jenes). The Portuguese also only knows male/female noms.

“aquilo” is used, for example, for things you don’t know what they are. For example, you can see something in the distance, can’t identify it and ask “What’s that?

Maybe this analogy will help you a little further.