French pronounsRelative pronouns

Using ‘qui’, ‘que’ and ‘dont’

The relative pronouns qui and que mean ‘who’, ‘whom’, ‘which’ or ‘that’ and are usually used at the start of a relative clause.

Qui comes before a verb and relates to the subject of that verb. For example:

• J’ai un frère qui s’appelle John. – I have a brother who is called John.
• J’habite dans une maison qui est assez grande. – I live in a house that is quite big.

Que comes before a noun or pronoun and relates to the object of the verb. For example:

• Aimes-tu le pantalon que j’ai acheté hier ? – Do you like the trousers that I bought yesterday?
• La nouvelle voiture qu’ils ont achetée était très chère. – The new car that they bought was very expensive.

Dont means ‘whose’ or ‘of which/whom’:

• Je connais un garçon dont la sœur est actrice. – I know a boy whose sister is an actress.

It also means ‘of which/whom’, ‘from which/whom’ or ‘about which/whom’, when used with verbs that are usually followed by de:

• Les femmes dont on parlait sont juste derrière nous. – The women we were talking about (about whom we were talking) are right behind us. (parler de – to talk about)

Fill in the correct relative pronoun: qui, que or dont.