Practice French

B1

Relative pronouns qui, que, où

At B1, learners begin connecting two ideas into one sentence. Relative pronouns help French avoid repetition and keep the sentence flowing.

Main patterns

  • qui = subject of the relative clause: Le livre qui est sur la table.
  • que = direct object of the relative clause: Le livre que j'ai lu.
  • = place or time: Le jour où nous sommes partis.

Watch out

Decide first whether the missing word is the subject, the object, or a place/time link. That decision determines the relative pronoun.

Try three examples

Example 1

Select the relative pronoun in *Le film ___ j'ai vu.*

  • qui
  • que
  • dont
Show answer

que

The film that I saw.

Example 2

The message that you wrote was clear: *Le message ___ tu as écrit était clair.*

Le message ___ tu as écrit était clair.

Show answer

que

The message that you wrote was clear.

Example 3

The book that is on the table: *Le livre ___ est sur la table.*

Le livre ___ est sur la table.

Show answer

qui

The book that is on the table.

Practise this lesson

Continue with the interactive exercise set and save your progress.