Qui, Que, Dont, Où: Mastering French Relative Pronouns

What Are Relative Pronouns and Why Do They Matter?

Relative pronouns connect two clauses about the same noun, avoiding repetition. They are what separates A2 French ("I have a book. The book is good.") from B1+ French ("I have a book that is really good").

QUI — The Subject Pronoun

Qui replaces the subject of the relative clause. It can refer to people or things.

• C'est l'homme qui parle fort. (That's the man who speaks loudly.) → "qui" is the subject of "parle"
• J'ai un chien qui s'appelle Rex. (I have a dog that is called Rex.)

QUE — The Direct Object Pronoun

Que replaces the direct object of the relative clause. It elides to qu' before a vowel.

• Le livre que je lis est intéressant. (The book that I'm reading is interesting.) → "que" is the object of "je lis"
• C'est la personne qu'il a rencontrée. (That's the person he met.)

DONT — The "Of Which / Whose" Pronoun

Dont is used when the verb or expression in the relative clause requires de. It replaces "de + noun".

• parler de → Le film dont je te parle est incroyable. (The film I'm telling you about is incredible.)
• avoir besoin de → C'est exactement ce dont j'avais besoin. (That's exactly what I needed.)
• Possession → L'homme dont la voiture est rouge. (The man whose car is red.)

OÙ — The Place and Time Pronoun

Où refers to a place or a point in time.

• La ville où je suis né. (The city where I was born.)
• Le jour où je l'ai rencontré. (The day when I met him.)

Quick-Choice Guide

• Is the word the subject of the next verb? → QUI
• Is the word the direct object? → QUE
• Does the next verb use de? → DONT
• Is the word a place or time? → OÙ