#zesteryoo
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Okay, first off, a primer of relative pronouns. Relative pronouns are pronouns that act in relation to something else so that you don't have to repeat things. Take these two clauses – a clause is the smallest unit of a language comprising of a subject and a verb :
(1) The man is my professor.
(2) You're talking to the man.
Let's say we wanted to combine clauses (2) into (1). We can see that there's a shared noun here: 'the man'. Since we're adding (2) to (1), (1) is our main clause and (2) is our subordinate. What we do is adapt the subordinate to the main clause. Let's look again: We see that the shared noun is an object in (2), and a subject in (1) so we put 'who'.
'The man who you're talking to is my professor.'
got it
Alright, in English the difference in pronoun choice comes down to animateness, whether it's a living being or not (that/who). There's also 'whose' which denotes possession or trait but that's the key. So it doesn't matter if it's an object or subject in the subordinate.
tho pretty sure it would be whom, or would it be who in french?
We're getting a bit ahead here
Say I changed number (2) to:
(1) The man is my professor.
(2) The man is walking.
The pronoun I'll use will still be 'who' because English doesn't care for subject/object: 'The man who is walking is my professor'.
It's only when I change the shared noun that the pronoun changes:
(1) The car belongs to me.
(2) You're looking at the car.
(3) The car is red.
(1) and (2): The car that you're looking at belongs to me.
(1) and (3) The car that is red belongs to me.
got it
With that out of the way, we can turn to French. Instead of focusing on whether the shared noun is living or not, French does it by way of subject/object.
In French, there are four relative pronouns: que/qui/dont/à + prep.
Let's go back to our earlier example, in French this time with a bit of a change.
(1) L'homme est mon professeur.
(2) Tu vois l'homme.
Here, our consideration is that the shared noun, « l'homme », is an object in (2), which means you use the object relative pronoun: « L'homme que tu vois est mon professeur. »
got it, vois is to see right?
This time, it doesn't matter if I change the noun to a non-living thing because what matters is the function of the relative pronoun.
(1) La voiture m'appartient.
(2) Tu vois la voiture.
=> La voiture que tu vois m'appartient.
yup
ok, I'm with you till far
Alright, let's say I replace it so that we have this:
(1) L'homme est mon professeur
(2) L'homme marche
We see that the shared noun is a subject this time, right? Therefore we use « qui », the subject relative pronoun.
« L'homme qui marche est mon professeur. »
With me so far?
whts marche
ye, I got it
Okay, a bit of practice before we move on.
(1) Le portable appartient à Jean.
(2) Marc tient le portable.
(3) Le portable est bleu.
Combine (1) and (2), and (1) and (3) using que/qui.
oki, gimme a sec then
ahem.. what is portable, tient and appartient
oh wait, last one is belongs
what abt the other 2
le portable = The phone
(il) tient = he is holding/he holds (tenir is the verb)
(il) appartient [à quelqu'un] = he/it belongs [to someone] (appartenir is the verb)
oh
(1) = main clause
(2) and (3) = subordinate clause
Okay let's go back up top
ok..
Notice the positioning here of (2)
Ohh, got it
La voiture que tu vois m'appartient.
(1) main clause
__ (2) subordinate clause__
Le portable que Marc tient appartient a Jean?
this seems better
Wonderful
Yippee
Okay, try the second one
ok 2nd one
Le portable qu'est bleu appartient a Jean?
Good BUT qui NEVER elides
that's the key
yk cus que + est
It's not que
Look at (3). The shared noun, « le portable », is it a SUBJECT or an OBJECT?
subject~?
Therefore you should use?
qui
exactly
The part you missed out on is that « qui » never elides so if you see « qu'est » it's always « que + est » and never « qui est »
Oki
Let's try again
Hope I'm not wasting much of your time tho
(1) La porte est rouge.
(2) La porte est faite en bois.
(3) Tu fermes la porte.
Combine (1) and (3) [meaning that (1) is main clause, (3) is subordinate], and (3) and (2) [(3) is main, (2) is subordinate]
You're not, don't worry
porte and fermes?..
la porte = the door
tu fermes = you close (fermer)
fait en bois = made of wood
La porte qui est fait en bois est rouge
faite* because « la porte » is feminine
You're right but that's (1) and (2)
fait en bois for me is make in drink
I asked you for (1) and (3), and (3) and (2)
drink is une boisson
bois = wood/forest
You're getting the hang of it though
another thing, I often notice en before things, isn't it in?
La porte est faite en bois
The door is made (of) wood
Ohh
It can be but prepositions are another matter
oki, will check it out later
We're about to tackle those later but first the previous things
La porte qui tu fermes est rouge
?
Look again
What is « la porte » in the subordinate clause, is it a SUBJECT or an OBJECT?
La porte qui tu fermes est faite en bois
object
so que?
La porte que tu fermes est rouge
wonderful
this?
(3) and (2), try again
ok
The base structure is the MAIN CLAUSE
Tu fermes la porte qu'est faite en bois
you closed the door that is made of wood?
close, not closed
that's past
Again, « qui » doesn't elide/contract
Also why faite?
Tu fermes la porte QUI est faite en bois.
Because it's an adjective and adjectives agree with the noun they are modifying.
Oh shoot, right
but isnt it a verb
fait
faire
Here it's a past participle which is used as an adjective
It works the same way in English too
it can be used as an adjective?..
'I have made a car'
'A car that is made by me'
oh
made is a participle in the first, an adjective in the second
hm ok
I have written a letter
A letter written
got it, so participles agree with gender and number?
When they're used in adjectives, yes
there's also another case but that's complicated and later
oki
Yea, let's omit that topic rn
oki, so que and qui is done
Let's try it one last time just to hammer it in:
(1) Les chaussures sont bleues.
(2) Les chaussures sont chères.
(3) J'achète les chaussures.
Combine (3) and (2), and (1) and (3)
oki
Remember, look at the subordinate clause, see if the shared noun is a subject or object, and choose qui/que accordingly
Qui doesn't contract, only que does
Oh you were right
?
oh, subject
there we go
cheres is what?
In general, subjects precede (placed before) the verb whereas objects succede (placed after) it
oki
j'achète = I buy (acheter)
Les chaussures que j'achete sont cheres
Wonderful!
Okay, notice that the positioning of the relative/subordinate clause is right after the object it replaces
Yup, that would be making (3) the main clause with (2) as the subordinate clause
oki
That's why the « que » ones are at the start, and the « qui » ones are at the end
For example, if I combined these two:
(1) J'achète les chaussures
(2) Marc aime les chaussures
It will be, « J'achète les chaussures que Marc aime »
Why?
Why is the subordinate clause at the end and not in the middle?
because the shoes are object now, CUS THOSE are what he likes
huh
wait what-
If I were to say, « J'achète que Marc aime les chaussures », would that be wrong?
Yea, feels wrong, cus I bought that marc likes the shoes
The point here is that the pronoun sticks to the noun it replaces
also would it be qui here?
it feels like subject here
With « les chaussures sont bleues », the object « les chaussures » is a subject at the start so the clause is there:
« Les chaussures que j'achète sont bleues »
hm, makes sense
With the earlier example, the object « les chaussures » is an object so the clause is at the end:
« J'achète les chaussures que Marc aime »
Why would it be?
« Marc aime les chaussures »
The one doing the loving is Marc, not the shoes
right- xD
The subject is what is doing the verb, the object is what the verb is being done to
Okay, are we good or do you need another set?
nope, we're good
Alright so what we've gone through are only for direct objects. « que » is a direct object pronoun.
oki
The difference between a direct and indirect object is just that there's a preposition between the verb and object.
I hear Mark / J'entends Mark => Mark is direct because there's nothing between the verb and the object.
I speak to Mark / Je parle à Mark => Mark is indirect because there's the preposition « à » between the verb and object.
got it.
In French, the indirect object and the preposition are considered a unit, you cannot separate them
wait
In English, you can separate them
why would it be que here-
Oh shoot
nvm
cus its object
done
continue sil vous plait-
Let's look all the way back to the first example in English:
(1) The man is my professor.
(2) You're talking to the man.
The sentence we made is, 'The man who you're talking to is my professor', right?
yea
Notice that we split the preposition and the object:
'The man who you're talking to is my professor'
In French this is FORBIDDEN
yea
If you move the relative pronoun, the preposition has to move with it
oki
A more French-like sentence would be:
'The man to whom you're speaking is my professor.'
oki
Let's look at that in French:
(1) L'homme est mon professeur.
(2) Tu parles à l'homme.
« L'homme que tu parles à est mon professeur »
THIS IS FORBIDDEN because the preposition « à » cannot be separated from the indirect object.
so L'homme a qui tu es parle est ma proffeseur~, that's definitely wrong but thought I'd put it
You're absolutely right
;O
Well the relative pronoun bit
it's que?
« L'homme à qui tu parles est mon professeur »
You got it accidentally but let's go back a bit
oki
The rule for indirect object pronouns is « preposition + lequel ». « lequel » agrees with the noun it changes.
In the subordinate clause, the noun we're replacing is masculine singular, so we use « lequel ».
lequel
laquelle
lesquels
lesquelles?
yup
oki
So let's look at those two sentences again
(1) L'homme est mon professeur.
(2) Tu parles à l'homme.
Let's analyse the subordinate clause's indirect object: « à l'homme ».
What is the gender and number of the object?
One and masculine
So you should use?
lequel?
Yup
a lequel
Now, the « le » in « lequel » is the definite article « le » so when it meets « à » it becomes « auquel »
It's like « à + le professeur » becomes « au professeur »
yep got it
Okay what happens if « à » meets « lesquelles » ?
Wonderful!
oui~
So that sentence would be:
« L'homme auquel tu parles est mon professeur »
With me so far?
oui
This applies to every preposition BUT DE which we'll cover in a bit
oki
Let's put this into practice, shall we?
d'accord
(1) Le siège est sale.
(2) Je m'assois sur le siège.
Combine (1) and (2), (2) being the subordinate.
le siège = the seat
sale = dirty
je m'assois = I'm sitting down (verb is « s'asseoir »)
siege?
I wrote it already
o
ok wait
ok wait this is confusing, gimem a sec
no idea-
using auquel probably
So, the seat is dirty, and I'm sitting on the seat
Alright, maybe I should just limit this to « à »
But here's the working out:
- Look at the subordinate clause (je m'assois sur le siège) and the main clause (le siège est sale)
- Determine the number and gender of the indirect object of the subordinate clause (le siège, masculine singular, so « lequel »)
- Move both the preposition (sur) and the pronoun (lequel) to the object it replaces (le siège)
=> Le siège sur lequel je m'assois est sale.
lequel is also "which"?
The explanation about « à » is simply because the sentences I gave involves « à ». I'm just trying to show you that it works with prepositions in general.
Yeah but that's another topic
The literal translation would be:
Le siège sur lequel je m'assois est sale.
The seat on which I sit is dirty.
The thing is that the criteria English uses is different from what French uses
so a word-for-word translation doesn't always work
c'est si deficile D;
dw you got through que/qui
Mon examen.. nvm can't speak in french, My exam got the whole topic for this
AND A WHOLE LOT OTHER-
im gonna die
(1) Je me bats pour la république.
(2) La république est morte.
Combine (2) and (1); (2) is the main clause, (1) is the subordinate clause.
je me bats pour quelque chose = I fight for something (se battre pour quelque chose = to fight for something)
la république = the republic
morte = dead
speaking exam is in 8 days :((, im 2% done avec le syllabus~
La republique pour laquelle je me bats est morte
YES YOU FUCKING GOT IT
YAYYYYYYYYY
Okay another one
what is quelque chose -.-
something
right
(1) Les femmes sont mes voisines.
(2) Tu parles aux femmes.
Combine (1) and (2).
voisine = female neighbour (voisin is the male version)
Les femmes auxquelles tu parles sont mes voisines
Close, look at the number
You're killing it
bad or good?
very good
Yes
so wouldn't that be me fighting?
Some verbs in French are pronominal meaning that their objects are their subjects. For some, they are essentially pronominal. « battre » is only pronominal.
oki
It's like the verb « s'appeler »
Je m'appelle Bertie. « appeler » is to call so your instincts would say, 'I call myself Bertie' but it's idiomatically understood and translated as 'My name is Bertie'.
It really depends on the verb
oki, will study on it later
oui, also, lequel per se doesn't get used right?
What do you mean?
like lequel in of itself doesn't get used, it always needs a preposition right?
In the context of relative pronouns, yes
oki
Outside of that, no
lequel is also which one right?
Because lequel can also be used for a specific thing
i saw that on a youtube vid
« Je vois beaucoup de voitures. Laquelle veux-tu ? »
'I see a lot of cars. Which (one) do you want?'
laquelle because it refers to « voiture » which is feminine
« dont »
Okay, I previously said that this pattern works for all indirect objects except for « de »
« de » is a special case
oki
In other prepositions, you only change the object and move both the preposition and pronoun to the noun it replaces, right?
ye
With « de + object », you replace both with « dont » so it's like a hybrid between the direct and indirect object pronouns
For example
Say I have these two clauses:
(1) Les femmes sont mes voisines.
(2) Tu parles des femmes.
If we were to follow the previous pattern, what would you have expected when combining (1) and (2)?
Les femmes auxquelles tu parles sont mes voisines
Remember that the « le » in « lequel » is an article so it elides with « de »
Look again at the preposition
it's not « à » this time
Okay
tho that doesn't exist
Les femmes des lequelles /desquelles tu parles sont mes voisines
desquelles because de + les = des
yes
Okay, but that's not what we see, instead what we see is:
« Les femmes dont tu parles sont mes voisines. »
:O
The fucky thing here is that both the preposition « de » and the pronoun « lesquelles » get replaced by a simple « dont »
and this does not change
Le professeur est en colère + je parle du professeur
=> Le professeur dont je parle est en colère.
en colere?
angry
Let's play with this!
(1) Je me souviens de la fille.
(2) La fille est belle.
Combine (2) and (1).
belle is sweet, right? and souviens is idk
belle = beautiful
sweet would be « doux/douce »
beau is beautiful for masculine
je me souviens = I remember (se souvenir de quelque chose = to remember something)
oui?
oki
Je me souviens dont fille est belle?
Which one is the main clause and which is the subordinate? Don't flip them.
Remember, « que/dont/preposition + lequel » is only for objects. Your example would mean that the replaced noun in the subordinate is a SUBJECT.
You already did this
It's the same principle
yes
Well, 'The girl of whom I remember is beautiful' would be the literal translation
La fille dont je souviens est belle
je me souviens BUT YES YOU GOT IT
Okay, something I've noticed is that you keep missing the structure
The main clause is the backbone, you don't do anything to it
The only thing you change is the subordinate
You keep changing the main clause
I would recommend these steps then
hmm ok
(1) Determine the main clause.
(2) Put it on the paper, don't do anything to it.
(3) Find the common noun between the main and subordinate clauses.
(4) Determine whether it's a subject or object in the subordinate clause.
=> If subject, replace with qui.
=> If direct object, replace with que.
=> If indirect object that is NOT « de »: replace with the preposition + lequel (change according to object of the subordinate)
=> If indirect object that is « de »: replace both the preposition and object with dont
oki
The only thing you're replacing is the SUBORDINATE, you do not do anything with the MAIN CLAUSE.
You only do two things with the main clause:
(1) Find the common noun between the two
(2) Where that common noun is located to place the subordinate
Training time
Yes
Yes, functions like « que »
C'est ou j'habille?
oki
oki
- La femme est ma copine.
- Tu penses à la femme.
- Je parle de la femme.
- Tu vois la femme.
Make me five sentences:
(a) 3) main clause + 1) subordinate clause.
(b) 1) main clause + 4) subordinate clause.
(c) 1) main clause + 2) subordinate clause.
(d) 4) main clause + 3) subordinate clause.
(e) 2) main clause + 1) subordinate clause.
girlfriend
LOOK AT THE MAIN CLAUSE
THAT IS NOT THE MAIN CLAUSE
please read carefully
hmm
Wait so english trans is the girl I'm takling to is my girlfriend?
La femmme dont je parle est ma copine?..
Je parle de la femme?
La femme est ma copine
Okay, what is the function of « la femme » in the subordinate clause?
Is it a subject, direct object, indirect object?
direct
That is not the main clause.
Are you sure?
« La femme est ma copine ».
Where is « la femme », before or after the verb?
Again, don't look at the main clause, look at the SUBORDINATE
What is the function of the shared noun IN THE SUBORDINATE CLAUSE?
there is no verb in the sub clause-
« est »?
oh
être?
qui?..
Good
Put that subordinate clause after the shared noun in the main clause.
Where is the shared noun in the MAIN CLAUSE?
femme?
start?
Try again
end-
oh right
Je parle de la femme qui est ma copine
oki-, tho what was wrong in the first one i gave?..
You're combining (1) and (3) :
La femme est ma copine + Je parle de la femme
You reversed it
oh oki
That's why I told you to read more carefully
Complete the rest.
READ CAREFULLY
Where is the shared noun in the main clause?
o
Put the subordinate clause NEXT to that shared noun.
Le professeur est en colère + je parle du professeur.
=> Le professeur dont je parle est en colère.
=> The shared noun (le professeur) is at the start so I put the subordinate after that.
Je vois le professeur + je parle du professeur.
=> Je vois le professeur dont je parle.
=> The shared noun (le professeur) is at the end so I put the subordinate after that.
Correct, continue.
Correct. Continue
4th
So that's not the right main clause.
Because here it starts with « la femme »
The 4th clause is « tu vois »
.
What is the shared object?
La femme
What function does « la femme » have in the subordinate?
You see the female, I am talking of the female
So I am talking of the female you see
so
Subject, direct object, or indirect object?
Indirect object
What preposition does it have?
de
Therefore it should be?
so dont?
Okay
Je parle dont la femme tu vois?
Where is the location of the shared noun in the MAIN CLAUSE?
no
end
both end
So put the subordinate clause there
remember subordinate is AFTER the shared noun in the main
You keep changing the main clause, please read carefully
Tu vois la femme dont je parle?
THERE WE GO
That is not the main clause
no
Look again
no wait
Tu penses a la femme que est ma copine
wait
yea
wait
no
no , ea
yea
got it
this
« La femme est ma copine »
La femme is the OBJECT there?
Even though it's BEFORE the verb?
right..
qui
but penses, that verb is being done ON her
thinking OF HER
thnking ABOUT-
So? The relative pronoun works ON THE SUBORDINATE CLAUSE
THIS IS THE KEY
What you replace is the noun IN THE SUBORDINATE CLAUSE
SUBORDINATE SUBORDINATE SUBORDINATE
got it
oki
Because the main clause is the actual sentence
Tu penses a la femme qui est ma copine
yup
You only need to bother the main clause in two occasions:
(1) Finding the shared noun
(2) Placing the subordinate
Omg, Je n'aime pas francais
It's the subordinate that moves, not the main clause
so wait, here "La maison _________ nous avons acheté est très grande."
It's quite literally similar to English, just the choice of pronoun changes
No.
.
yes
The one DOING = subject
The one BEING DONE TO = object
Yes
omg 2 hours on this, tysmmmm
though you need to train A FUCK TON
Oui, je agree
you really need to read carefully
oki
because your formation is all good
but the structure is lacking
you keep putting the wrong main clause and putting the subordinate clause in the wrong places
It's the same as English
ill practice more , so I have now grown a big aversion for french
Combine:
(1) The man is my professor.
(2) The professor is kind.
What is the main clause? The man is the professor.
What is the subordinate clause? The professor is kind.
What is the shared noun? The professor.
What is the function of the shared noun in the subordinate? Subject.
Where is the shared noun in the main clause? End.
=> The man is my professor who is kind.
Combine:
(1) The man is my professor.
(2) I speak of the man.
What is the main clause? The man is the professor.
What is the subordinate clause? I speak of the man.
What is the shared noun? The professor.
What is the function of the shared noun in the subordinate? Indirect object.
Where is the shared noun in the main clause? End.
=> The man is my professor of whom I speak.
Combine:
(1) The professor is kind.
(2) I speak to the professor.
What is the main clause? The professor is kind.
What is the subordinate clause? I speak to the professor.
What is the shared noun? The professor.
What is the function of the shared noun in the subordinate? Indirect object.
Where is the shared noun in the main clause? Start.
=> The professor to whome I speak is kind.
Literally the same structure.
« L'homme est mon professeur qui est sympa. »
« L'homme est mon professeur dont je parle. »
« Le professeur auquel je parle est sympa. »
Same structure
Just read CAREFULLY