Word Choice – Correct Usage of ‘Who Are These’ vs ‘Who Are Those’

word-choice

As far as I know "who is this/that?"are used to talk about people, but the plural form "who are these/those?" isn't. Is there an explanation why it is wrong to use "who are these/those?" when talking about people?

For example, I am looking at some people and ask my friend: "who are these/those (people)?"

Best Answer

As a general rule, we use 'this' for something immediately in front of us or brought to our attention, and 'that' for something that we are highlighting from a distance.

Example: Imagine you're in a crowded room. If a friend introduced you to someone - brought them to you - they might say "this is John". But, if your friend pointed at someone on the other side of the room, they might say "that is John".

The same is true of 'these' and 'those'. Generally, 'these' is for things brought to you, 'those' are things that are highlighted to you.

Example: If your friend handed you some photographs, he might say "these are photos of my family". But, if he pointed at some photos hanging on the wall, he might say "those are photos of my family".

There are exceptions. For example, if a group of people were in the distance but were intentionally heading towards you, one might ask "who are these people?". Likewise, someone might preemptively say "look at this" before bringing something to you. So, it isn't so much the distance between you and the thing being referred to, but whether it will remain remote.