One / ones

(Avoiding repetition)

We use one (singular) and ones (plural):

• after an adjective:

See those two girls? Helen is the tall one and Jane is the short one.
Which is your car, the red one or the blue one?
My trousers are torn. I need some new ones.

• after the:

See those two girls? Helen is the one on the left.

Let's look at the photographs – the ones you took in Paris.

after which in questions:

You can borrow a book. Which one do you want?

Which ones are yours?

Exercise 1

- I've bought these two lipsticks.

- (Me he comprado estos dos pintalabios)

- I like both but the purple one is gorgeous.

- (Me gustan los dos, pero el morado es precioso)
En cambio, utilizaremos ones cuando este sustituya nombres contables en plural.

- Whose are these socks?

- ¿De quién son estos calcetines?

- The big ones are mine.

- Los grandes son míos.

2. ¿Cómo se utilizan one y ones?

Estas partículas se utilizan siguiendo unas estructuras concretas:

WHICH ONE (cuál) WHICH ONES (cuáles)

Which one do you want? (apple) Which ones do you want? (apples)
¿Cuál quieres? (manzana) ¿Cuáles quieres? (manzanas)
 THIS / THAT ONE (este / ese) THESE / THOSE ONES (estos / esos)

This one is blue and that one is red. (teddy bear) These ones are blue and those ones are red. (teddy bears)
Este es azul y aquel es rojo. (osito de peluche) Estos son azules y aquellos son rojos. (ositos de peluche)

THE ONE (el) THE ONES (los)

The one on the left is more expensive. (dress) The ones on the right are more expensive. (shoes)
El de la izquierda es más caro. (vestido) Los de la derecha son más caros. (zapatos)

A/AN + ADJECTIVE + ONE THE + ADJECTIVE + ONES

The big one is a Dane and the small one is a Which gloves do you like best, the white ones or the
Puli. (dog) red ones?
El grande es un Danés y el pequeño un Puli. ¿Qué guantes te gustan más, los blancos o los rojos?
(perro)
 A/AN + ADJECTIVE + ONE SOME + ADJECTIVE + ONES

His car is very old. He needs a new one. If you want tomatoes, I have some very good ones.
Su coche es muy viejo. Necesita uno nuevo. Si quiere tomates tengo unos de muy buenos.

¡Recuerda!

El pronombre one se utiliza para sustituir un nombre contable en singular. En cambio,

empleamos el pronombre ones cuando sutituimos nombres contables en plural.

SINGULAR PLURAL
Which one? Which ones?
This / that one These / those ones
The one The ones
The + adjective + one The + adjective + ones
A/an + adjective + one Some + adjective + ones

Exercise 1

1. This bag is very old. I need a new ______________.

2. Small pineapples are sweeter than big ______________.
3. The new smartphones are much faster than the old ______________.
4. Which is your car, the black ______________ or the white ______________?
5. She needs new shoes; the old ______________ are too small.
6. If you buy two bottles of water, you get a third ______________ free.
7. These dresses are expensive. Are there any cheap ______________?
8. Jack has three pens – a red ______________ and two green ______________.
9. I would like to have a cupcake – the red ______________ looks great.
10. I would like to have some cupcakes – the green ______________ look great.