Buying Something with Quiero Este or Esta
Este and esta let you identify the item you want without knowing a detailed description. Match the pointing word to noun gender and make a clear request.
Learning objective
Point to and request a masculine or feminine item in a shop.
At a shop, pointing can reduce the vocabulary you need. Spanish organises nouns into masculine and feminine categories, two grammar groups that do not describe a thing's identity. Quiero este, por favor means I want this one, please, when the visible item has a masculine-category noun. Quiero means I want, and este stands in for that nearby item.
Use Quiero esta, por favor for an item with a feminine noun category. If you are pointing to a shirt, la camisa is feminine, so esta can replace la camisa. If you are pointing to a book, el libro is masculine, so este can replace el libro. The item does not have a human identity; the choice follows its grammatical noun category.
A demonstrative is a pointing word that identifies a noun. You may keep the noun after este or esta: Quiero este libro means I want this book, and Quiero esta camisa means I want this shirt. Learn each complete pairing so the ending remains visible: este libro, esta camisa.
Quiero is direct and common, but tone and courtesy matter. Add por favor, greet the assistant, and avoid treating the phrase as a command bark. Quisiera este libro, meaning I would like this book, is a softer alternative. Quisiera is a prepared polite request form; either frame can work naturally in an ordinary purchase.
If you do not know the noun category, point and ask ¿Qué es esto?, What is this? The neutral word esto asks about an unidentified thing; it is not the same as este or esta replacing a known noun. Hear the answer with its article, such as el mapa or la bolsa, then choose este or esta.
Examples
Quiero este, por favor.
I want this one, please.
Este replaces one nearby masculine-category item.
Quiero esta, por favor.
I want this one, please.
Esta replaces one nearby feminine-category item.
Quisiera este libro.
I would like this book.
Este remains beside the masculine noun libro.
Quiero esta camisa.
I want this shirt.
Esta matches the feminine noun camisa.
Common mistake
- Instead of
- Quiero esto camisa.
- Try
- Quiero esta camisa.
Esto is a neutral word used when the thing has not been identified by a noun. Once camisa is stated, the pointing word must match that feminine noun: esta camisa. Learn the two-word unit rather than choosing by the shopper's gender.
Practice
Try it yourself
At a stall, first request a nearby book with quisiera and its noun. Then request a nearby bag, la bolsa, with quiero but replace the noun by the matching word meaning this one. Add courtesy to both requests.