The relative pronouns qui, que and où link a noun to the clause that describes it: subject, object or place. Qui is followed by a verb; que is followed by a subject and a verb: Un ami qui parle. Un ami que j’aime.
Summary
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A2.
| Point | Rule | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qui | the subject, person or thing; a verb follows | J’ai un ami qui habite à Lyon. | I have a friend who lives in Lyon. | |
| Que | the direct object; a subject and a verb follow; qu’ before a vowel | Voici le livre que je lis. | Here is the book that I'm reading. | |
| Où | the place; a subject and a verb follow | La ville où j’habite est petite. | The town where I live is small. | |
| Choice | a verb next: qui; a subject next: que | L’homme qui parle / L’homme que je vois | the man who is speaking / the man whom I see | |
| Trap | que becomes qu’ before a vowel; qui never changes | Le film qu’il voit est long. | The film he is watching is long. | |
| Trap | a place is expressed by où, never que | Le café où je travaille est près de la gare. | The café where I work is near the station. |
Overview
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A2.
- A relative pronoun links a noun to a clause that describes it. J’ai un ami qui habite à Paris. / C’est la ville où je travaille.I have a friend who lives in Paris. / It's the city where I work.
- The relative pronoun comes right after the noun it describes. La femme qui parle est ma sœur. / Le café où je travaille est près de la gare.The woman who is speaking is my sister. / The café where I work is near the station.
- To describe a noun with an adjective, see Adjectives.
- Qui, que and où also ask questions: see Questions.
Form: qui, que, où
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A2.
| Form | Replaces | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| noun + qui + verb | the subject: a person or a thing | L’homme qui parle est mon père. / Le train qui arrive est en retard. | The man who is speaking is my father. / The train that is arriving is late. | |
| noun + que + subject + verb | the direct object: a person or a thing | Le livre que je lis est bon. / La fille qu’il aime s’appelle Léa. | The book I'm reading is good. / The girl he loves is called Léa. | |
| noun + où + subject + verb | a place | La ville où j’habite est petite. / Le café où je travaille est près de la gare. | The town where I live is small. / The café where I work is near the station. |
- Que becomes qu’ before a vowel; qui never changes. Le film qu’elle voit est long. / L’ami qui arrive est là.The film she is watching is long. / The friend who is arriving is here.
- Qui and que keep the same form for a masculine, feminine, singular or plural noun. Les filles qui parlent sont amies. / Les livres que je lis sont bons.The girls who are talking are friends. / The books I'm reading are good.
- The verb after qui agrees with the noun that qui describes. L’enfant qui joue est là. / Les enfants qui jouent sont là.The child who is playing is here. / The children who are playing are here.
- Qui, que and où already stand for the noun: the clause adds no other pronoun. Voici le livre que je lis. / La ville où j’habite est petite.Here is the book I'm reading. / The town where I live is small.
- For the elision of que into qu’, see Liaison and Elision.
Compare: qui and que
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A2.
| qui | que | Level |
|---|---|---|
| the subject of the verb that follows | the direct object of the verb in the clause | |
| a verb follows it | a subject and a verb follow it | |
| C’est l’homme qui parle.It's the man who is speaking. | C’est l’homme que je vois.It's the man I see. |
Typical errors
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A2.
| Wrong | Right | Rule | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| L’homme que parle est mon père. | L’homme qui parle est mon père. | the pronoun is the subject of parle: say qui | |
| Le livre qui je lis est bon. | Le livre que je lis est bon. | the pronoun is the object of lis, and je is the subject: say que | |
| Le café que je travaille est près de la gare. | Le café où je travaille est près de la gare. | a place is expressed by où, never que | |
| Le livre je lis est bon. | Le livre que je lis est bon. | the pronoun cannot be left out, although English says “the book I'm reading” | |
| Le film que il voit est long. | Le film qu’il voit est long. | que becomes qu’ before a vowel |