Relative Clauses — que, quien, donde, lo que
Form relative clauses with que (for things and people), quien/quienes (for people after prepositions), donde (for places), and lo que (what / that which). Practice embedding a relative clause into a main sentence smoothly.
A lesson of Spanish B1 — Intermediate, in Complex Grammar, about 10 minutes.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to construct relative clauses using the main relative pronouns in Spanish to connect information within complex sentences.
What Is a Relative Clause?
A relative clause is a subordinate clause that modifies a noun (the antecedent). It answers questions like which one? or what kind? about the noun it refers to.
La chica que vive en mi edificio es doctora. The girl who lives in my building is a doctor.
The relative clause "que vive en mi edificio" modifies la chica (the antecedent).
The Relative Pronoun: Que
Que is the most common relative pronoun in Spanish. Unlike English, que is never dropped — you must always include it.
Que can refer to people or things and acts as subject or direct object of the relative clause:
| Function | Example |
|---|---|
| Subject (thing) | El libro que está en la mesa es mío. — The book that is on the table is mine. |
| Subject (person) | La persona que llamó es mi jefa. — The person who called is my boss. |
| Direct object (thing) | El artículo que leí era interesante. — The article that I read was interesting. |
| Direct object (person) | La profesora que conozco habla cuatro idiomas. — The teacher whom I know speaks four languages. |
Quien / Quienes — Referring to People Only
Quien (singular) / quienes (plural) refers only to people and is used:
- After prepositions
- In non-restrictive relative clauses (adding extra, non-essential information)