Ceci = this + without any words after Cette = this + female word Ce = this + male word Cela = that (when the thing you're talking about is far) Ca = cela (the same, just shorter) ces = these + male/female word

Examples to make it clearer: Ce Ce soir this night en ce moment at this moment Ceci : dites lui ceci tell him this avec ceci ( with this ,it or her depending on the context ) cette (this for feminine nouns) de cette façon like this , this way cette fille this girl cela : that cela vaut la peine ( as an expression it means " it is worth it " comme cela like that ça comme ça like this ça marche it works ces ( plural ) these dans ces conditions in these conditions dans ces jours these days And they are indeed still very confusing . With time and practice of the language ,you will get a sense of when to use which ! Bonne chance !