οὗτος / αὕτη /τοῦτο

Meaning:

• These or this
• This one, this person, this thing
• They or he or she or it

Demonstrative pronoun.

οὗτος usually refers to something close to the speaker — “this” as opposed to ἐκεῖνος (“that”).

• οὗτος → “this one right here”
• ἐκεῖνος → “that one over there”

It can refer to:

• What is near physically: οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος — “this man” (John 9:16plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigJohn 9:16
  
  Greek ἔλεγον οὖν ἐκ τῶν Φαρισαίων τινές· οὐκ ἔστιν οὗτος παρὰ θεοῦ ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὅτι τὸ σάββατον οὐ τηρεῖ. ἄλλοι ἔλεγον· πῶς δύναται ἄνθρωπος ἁμαρτωλὸς τοιαῦτα σημεῖα ποιεῖν; καὶ σχίσμα ἦν ἐν αὐτοῖς. ESV Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.…)
• What was just mentioned: καὶ τοῦτο ἐστίν… — “and this is…” (1 John 5:11plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_big1 John 5:11
  
  Greek καὶ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ μαρτυρία, ὅτι ζωὴν αἰώνιον ἔδωκεν ἡμῖν ὁ θεός, καὶ αὕτη ἡ ζωὴ ἐν τῷ υἱῷ αὐτοῦ ἐστιν. ESV And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. NIV And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. NLT And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.…)
• What is about to be mentioned: τοῦτο λέγω… — “this I say…” (1 Corinthians 15:50plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_big1 Corinthians 15:50
  
  Greek Τοῦτο δέ φημι, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι σὰρξ καὶ αἷμα βασιλείαν θεοῦ κληρονομῆσαι οὐ δύναται, οὐδὲ ἡ φθορὰ τὴν ἀφθαρσίαν κληρονομεῖ. ESV I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. NIV I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.…)

There are a number of idiomatic expressions that involve οὗτος:

• ἐν τούτῳ — “in this / by this” (very common in John’s letters), e.g. ἐν τούτῳ γινώσκομεν… — “By this we know…” (1 John 4:9plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_big1 John 4:9
  
  Greek ἐν τούτῳ ἐφανερώθη ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν ἡμῖν, ὅτι τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἀπέσταλκεν ὁ θεὸς εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἵνα ζήσωμεν δι’ αὐτοῦ. ESV In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. NIV This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.…)
• διὰ τοῦτο — “because of this / therefore”
• μετὰ ταῦτα — “after these things”, e.g. μετὰ ταῦτα ἦν ἑορτὴ τῶν Ἰουδαίων — “After these things there was a feast of the Jews” (John 5:1plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigJohn 5:1
  
  Greek Μετὰ ταῦτα ἦν ἡ ἑορτὴ τῶν Ἰουδαίων, καὶ ἀνέβη Ἰησοῦς εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα. ESV After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. NIV Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. NLT Afterward Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish holy days.)

The word οὗτος often appears in Christological declarations:

• οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱός μου — “This is my Son.” (Matthew 3:17plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigMatthew 3:17
  
  Greek καὶ ἰδοὺ φωνὴ ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν λέγουσα, οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ υἱός μου ὁ ἀγαπητός, ἐν ᾧ εὐδόκησα. ESV and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” NIV And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” NLT)
• οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός — “This is the Christ.” (John 7:26plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigJohn 7:26
  
  Greek καὶ ἴδε παρρησίᾳ λαλεῖ, καὶ οὐδὲν αὐτῷ λέγουσιν. μήποτε ἀληθῶς ἔγνωσαν οἱ ἄρχοντες ὅτι οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός; ESV And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? NIV Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Christ?…)
• τοῦτο ἐστιν τὸ σῶμά μου — “This is my body.” (Luke 22:19plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigLuke 22:19
  
  Greek Καὶ λαβὼν ἄρτον εὐχαριστήσας ἔκλασεν καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς λέγων· τοῦτό ἐστιν τὸ σῶμά μου τὸ ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν διδόμενον· τοῦτο ποιεῖτε εἰς ἐμὴν ἀνάμνησιν. ESV And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” NIV And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying,…)

These are some of the most powerful theological uses of the word, introducing divine revelation, identity, and covenantal meaning.