LoginRelative Pronouns For Intermediate learners
Whar Are Relative Pronouns?
Relative pronouns (pronombres relativos) are words that introduce relative clauses and connect them to a main clause. They refer back to a noun (the antecedent) and provide more information about it. For example, in the sentence "El libro que leí era interesante," the relative pronoun "que" is used to join the verb "leí" to the noun "libro" and specify which book is being talked about.
The Spanish relative pronouns include:
Que
Quien(es)
El que (la que/los que/las que)
El cual (la cual/los cual/las cual)
Que
"Que" is the most commonly used relative pronoun which can be used to refer to people as well as things and abstract concepts. Its form remains unchanged regardless of the gender or number of the noun it refers back to. Here are some examples:
El hombre que vive allí es mi tío.
The man that lives there is my uncle.
La casa que compraron es grande.
The house that they bought is big.
Tip!
"Que" can be used after some short prepositions (a, de, con, en), but only when its antecedent is non-human.
La casa en que vivo es pequeña.
The house in which I live is small.
El libro de que hablamos es interesante.
The book about which we talked is interesting.
El chico con que hablo.
The kid to whom I talk.
When the antecedent is human, "que" is not acceptable.
Quien(es)
"Quien" is only used when the antecedent is human. Its form changes based on the number of the people it refers back to: "quien" is used when the antecedent is singular and "quienes" is used when it is plural. They are used:
after prepositions, when the antecedent is human
Las personas a quienes ayudaste están agradecidas.
The people whom you helped are grateful.
in non-restrictive relative clauses which are not essential for the sentence and only add extra information. These clauses are separated by a comma.
La chica, quien es mi amiga, viene mañana.
The girl, who is my friend, comes tomorrow.
Warning!
In non-restrictive clauses both "que" and "quien" are allowed, but when the relative clause is restrictive, that is, when it is essential for the sentence, and there is no preposition, "quien" is not allowed and "que" is the only valid relative pronoun.
Los estudiantes que estudian mucho sacan buenas notas.
The students who study a lot get good grades.
ُThe clause "que estudian mucho" is restrictive because it specifies a particular group of students and removing it would change the meaning of the sentence. In this case, "quien" is not acceptable.
"El que" and "El cual"
"El que" and its different forms ("la que," "los que," and "las que") as well as "el cual" and its different forms ("la cual," "los cuales," and "las cuales") reflect the gender and number of the noun they refer to and can be used with both human and non-human antecedents. "El cual" is more formal and mostly used in writing. "El que" and "el cual" are used:
in non-restrictive clauses, to specify a particular member of a group.
Mi hermana, la que estudia medicina, esta muy intelligence.
My sister, who studies medicine, is very smart.
The clause "la que estudia medicina" is non-restrictive because it adds non-essential information and removing it would not harm the structure or meaning of the sentence.
after prepositions, in both restrictive and non-restrictive clauses
Los coches con los que viajaban son caros.
The cars with with they travel are expensive.
Las casas, entre las cuales estaba la de mis abuelos, fueron demolidas.
The houses, between which was my grandparents' house, was demolished.
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