Relative pronouns

It is essential to know how to connect several elements in the same sentence. One way to link ideas back to persons and things already mentioned is by using pronoms relatifs (relative pronouns). Relative pronouns link two sentences, making one dependent on the other. The dependent phrase is also called the subordinate clause; it contains a verb, but usually cannot stand alone. Choosing the correct relative pronoun depends on its function in the sentence (subject, direct object, or object of a preposition).

Qui

Let’s start with the relative pronoun qui used as a subject. Qui may refer to people or things and may mean who, whom, which, what, or that.

J’écoute la personne qui parle.

I am listening to the person who is speaking.

Il aime les histoires qui finissent bien.

He likes stories that end well.

Elle remercie la cousine qui l’a invitée.

She thanks the cousin who invited her.

Nous félicitons l’artiste qui a pris cette photo.

We congratulate the artist who took this picture.

Note that the -i of qui is never dropped in front of a vowel sound (see above: qui a pris). Qui as a subject precedes the verb in the dependent clause.

When qui is the subject of the dependent clause, the verb following qui agrees with the noun or pronoun that qui replaces.

C’est moi qui lui ai vendu cette lampe.

I am the one who sold him this lamp.

C’est toi qui es responsable.

You are the one who is responsible.

C’est vous qui avez restauré cette chaise?

Did you restore (Was it you who restored) this chair?

vous qui êtes le propriétaire?

Are you the owner?

Que

When the dependent clause introduced by a relative pronoun already has a subject noun or pronoun, the relative pronoun que (whom, which, that) is used. Like qui, the relative pronoun querefers to both people and things.

Elle n’aime pas le cadre que vous lui montrez.

She does not like the frame you are showing her.

Voici le lustre que Daniel a acheté.

Here’s the chandelier Daniel bought.

J’ai contacté l’ébéniste que tu as recommandé.

I contacted the cabinetmaker you recommended.

Rends-moi le livre que je t’ai prêté.

Give me back the book I lent you.

In the following sentences, note that the -e of que is dropped before a vowel (qu’).

Les articles qu’il vend sont chers.

The items he sells are expensive.

Les statues qu’il a chez lui viennent d’Afrique.

The statues that he has at home come from Africa.

L’article qu’elle écrit sera publié en mai.

The article she is writing will be published in May.

Les objets qu’ils fabriquent sont de grande valeur.

The objects they make are of great value.

In the compound tenses, if the direct object is placed before the verb, the past participle agrees in gender and number with that direct object. This includes sentences where que (qu’) refersback to a direct object noun. See the following examples:

C’est la table en marbre que nous avons trouvée au marché aux puces.

Here’s the marble table we found at the flea market.

La pièce qu’il a écrite n’a jamais été jouée.

The play he wrote was never performed.

Montrez-moi la photo que vous avez prise.

Show me the picture you took.

Les chaises qu’ils ont restaurées sont comme neuves.

The chairs they restored look new.

Note the following sentences where qui is the object of the verb in the dependent clause. In this case, a subject noun or pronoun comes between qui and the verb form. Remember that the -iof qui is never dropped.

Je ne sais pas qui il est.

I don’t know who he is.

Le président n’a pas dit qui il nommerait à ce poste.

The president did not say who(m) he would appoint to this position.

Nous ignorons qui elle renverra.

We don’t know who(m) she’ll fire.

Le policier a révélé qui il avait attrapé.

The police officer revealed who(m) he had caught.

The relative clause is often inserted into the main clause. Note again that qui and que can refer to either people or things.

La commode qui est dans la vitrine, a appartenu à Talleyrand.

The chest of drawers that is in the window belonged to Talleyrand.

L’homme que vous voyez au fond de l’atelier est un des meilleurs artisans du pays.

The man you see in the back of the shopis one of the best craftsmen in the country.

Lequel

When verbs are followed by prepositions, the relative pronouns qui (whom), quoi (what), lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles (that, which, whom) are used. The preposition precedes these pronouns. Qui refers only to people; quoi is an indefinite thing or object; and lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles refer to specific things. (Lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles may also be used for people; but this use is less common.)

C’est l’antiquaire à qui je pensais.

(Less common: C’est l’antiquaire auquel je pensais.)

He’s the antiques dealer I was thinking about.

C’est le tableau auquel je pensais.

It is the painting (that) I was thinking about.

Tu sais à quoi il pense?

Do you know what he is thinking about?

C’est le client pour lequel je travaille.

It’s the client for whom I am working.

C’est la société pour laquelle je travaille.

It’s the company for which I am working.

Voici le collègue avec qui j’écris le rapport.

Here is the colleague with whom I am writing the report.

Les outils avec lesquels il travaille appartenaient à son père.

The tools with which he is working belonged to his father.

Je vous présente la personne sans qui je n’aurai pas pu réussir.

Let me introduce you to the person without whom I would not have been able to succeed.

Merci pour ces documents sans lesquels je n’aurais pas pu authentifier ces oeuvres.

Thank you for these documents without which I would not have been able to authenticate these works.

Note that qui cannot be used with the preposition parmi (among).Plusieurs peintres, parmi lesquels celui-ci, étaient nés en Angleterre.

Several painters, among whom this one, were born in England.

Où

The relative pronoun où, referring to a place, often replaces dans lequel, sur lequel, par lequel, etc. Où is more common in modern language.

C’est le magasin dans lequel je fais mes courses.

It’s the store where I do my shopping.

C’est le magasin où je fais mes courses.

It’s the store where I do my shopping.

La région dans laquelle ils habitent est très calme.

The area where they live is very quiet.

La région où ils habitent est très calme.

The area where they live is very quiet.

The relative pronoun où is also used when the antecedent expresses time.

Tu te souviens de l’année où il est arrivé dans la région?

Do you remember the year (when) he arrived in the region?

Le jour où il a été élu, tout le monde était content.

The day (when) he was elected, everyone was happy.

L’instant où nous sommes partis, il a commencé à pleuvoir.

The moment (when) we left , it started to rain.

Le dix-neuvième siècle fut un siècle où il y eut de nombreuses inventions.

The nineteenth century was a century (when) there were many inventions.

Dont

The relative pronoun dont acts as an object of the main clause and can refer to both people and things. It is used to refer to objects of verbs or verbal expressions that include the preposition de. (You may wish to review the verbs and their prepositions inChapter 14.)

Il a besoin de ces documents.He needs these documents.

Voici les documents dont il a besoin.

Here are the documents he needs.

Elle se sert d’un pinceau.She uses a paintbrush.

Montrez-moi le pinceau dont elle se sert.

Show me the paintbrush she uses.

Tu as parlé d’un souffleur de verre.

You talked about a glassblower.

Où habite le souffleur de verre dont tu nous as parlé?

Where does the glassblower you told us about live?

Elle est fière de son fils.She is proud of her son.

Denis est le fils dont elle est fière.

Denis is the son she is proud of.

In modern French, dont usually replaces duquel, de laquelle, desquels, and desquelles.

Le marchand dont (duquel) je me souviens est à Saint-Ouen.

The merchant I remember is in Saint-Ouen.

Les forgerons, dont (desquels) je parle dans mon roman, vivent dans ce live quartier.

The blacksmiths I talk about in my book in this neighborhood.

Dont is also used to express possession (whose, of whom, of which). After this construction, the word order is subject + verb + object.

Un artisan, dont j’ai aussi rencontré le père, m’a encouragé à devenir verrier.

A craftsman, whose father I also met, encouraged me to become a glassworker.

Ils ont des voisins dont les amis sont bergers.

They have neighbors whose friends are shepherds.

Ce que, ce qui, ce dont, ce à quoi

When there is no specific word or antecedent for the relative pronoun to refer to, the antecedent ce is combined with the pronoun. Ce qui, ce que, ce dont, and ce à quoi, all meaning what, refer to ideas, not to persons, and do not have genderor number. Choosing the correct indefinite relative pronoun again depends on the pronoun’s function in the sentence (subject, direct object, or object of a preposition). Here again, it will be useful to review the verbs and their prepositions in Chapter 14.

Ce qui is used as the subject of the dependent clause.

J’aime ce qui est fabriqué dans cet atelier.

I like what is made (what they make) in this workshop.

Il ne sait pas ce qui a provoqué leur réaction.

He does not know what triggered their reaction.

Qui sait ce qui est arrivé?

Who knows what happened?

J’aimerais savoir ce qui lui plairait.

I’d like to know what she would like.

Ce que is used as the direct object of the dependent clause.

Savez-vous ce qu’il fait ces jours-ci?

Do you know what he is doing these days?

Tu comprends ce que ce journaliste écrit (ce qu’écrit ce journaliste)?

Do you understand what this journalist writes?

Ils ont fait ce qu’il ne fallait pas faire.

They did what shouldn’t have been done.

Elle écrit ce qu’elle vit.

She writes what she lives.

Ce dont is used when verbs take the preposition de.

Elle ne comprend pas ce dont il a peur. (avoir peur de)

She does not understand what he’s afraid of.

Fais-moi voir ce dont tu te sers. (se servir de)

Show me what you use.

La police veut savoir ce dont elle se souvient. (se souvenir de)

The police want to know what she remembers.

Je m’intéresse à ce dont vous avez parlé ce matin. (parler de)

I am interested in what you talked about this morning.

Ce à quoi is used with verbs that take the preposition à.

J’ignore ce à quoi il s’abonne. (s’abonner à)

I don’t know what he subscribes to.

C’est exactement ce à quoi je m’attendais de sa part. (s’attendre à)

It’s exactly what I expected from him.

Ils ne savent pas ce à quoi tu t’opposes. (s’opposer à)

They don’t know what you are opposed to.

Je voudrais savoir ce à quoi elle aspire. (aspirer à)

I’d like to know what she is aspiring to.

The indefinite relative pronouns ce qui, ce que, ce à quoi, and ce dont are frequently placed at the beginning of a sentence to stress a point. This construction compensates for the English intonation that is much more marked. When a verb requires a preposition, it is repeated in the second clause.

Ce qui est amusant, c’est les marchés aux puces.

Flea markets are fun!

Ce qu’elle adore, c’est acheter des vieilles chaises.

She loves buying old chairs!

Ce dont il a envie, c’est de cet automate.

What he’d like is this automaton!

Ce à quoi il s’intéresse, c’est à l’aromathérapie.

He is interested in aromatherapy!

The relative pronouns qui and que can sometimes be followed by the subjunctive. If there is a doubt about the existence of someone or the possible realization of anything, the subjunctive may be used after the relative pronoun.

Il cherche un artisan qui puisse restaurer ce fauteuil Louis XV.

He is looking for an artisan who might be able to restore this Louis XV armchair.

Connaîtriez-vous un antiquaire qui vende des pièces rares?

Would you know of an antiques dealer who sells rare coins?

When the antecedent of the relative pronoun qui or que is a superlative such as le plus (the most), le moins (the least), le seul (the only), l’unique (the unique), le premier (the fi rst), le dernier(the last), etc., the subjunctive may be used.
Paolo est le meilleur artisan qui vende des objets à Burano.

Paolo is the best artisan who sells pieces in Burano.

C’est le seul marché aux puces que je connaisse dans cette ville.It’s the only flea market I know in this city.