Relative pronouns link together what would otherwise be two separate sentences.

Je cherche l'homme qui a volé ma bicyclette.
Je cherche un homme. L'homme a volé ma bicyclette.

Relative pronouns allow you to say more about a person or an object than a simple adjective can, by opening up a new clause (like a mini sentence within a sentence).

J'aime les voitures françaises.
J'aime les voitures françaises qui ne coûtent pas cher.

To a certain point, adding in such relative clauses makes your French run more smoothly, it makes it sound more elegant and more natural.

The second clause, 'qui ne coûtent pas cher', is almost a sentence on its own. Grammatically, it's very close to saying 'les voitures françaises ne coûtent pas cher'.

The relative pronoun, 'qui', links this almost sentence to the full sentence 'J'aime les voitures françaises'. But the second clause cannot stand alone, you cannot have a sentence 'Qui ne coûtent pas cher.' That's why this clause is called a 'subordinate clause', or a 'relative clause', subordinate or relative to the 'main clause'.

If the relative pronoun is the subject of the new clause, it is always 'qui', whether it refers to a person or a thing, whether it is masculine or feminine, singular or plural.

subject
qui

C'est mon frère qui fait la vaisselle chez nous.                 ('qui' is the subject of 'fait')
(It's my brother that does the dishes in our house.)

  • ('qui' replaces a repetition of 'mon frère':
C'est mon frère.
  Mon frère fait la vaisselle chez nous.
\/                         
 C'est mon frère qui fait la vaisselle chez nous.               

Je n'aime pas les films qui durent plus de trois heures. ('qui' is the subject of 'durent')
(I don't like films that last more than three hours.)

  • ('qui' replaces a repetition of 'les films' (which is why 'durent' is plural):
Je n'aime pas les films.
 Les films durent plus de trois heures.
\/                            
Je n'aime pas les films qui durent plus de trois heures.

If the relative pronoun is a direct object of its clause, it is always 'que', whether it refers to a person or a thing, whether it is masculine or feminine, singular or plural.

Object
Que

Ma soeur mange les bonbons que ma mère achète pour mon petit frère.
(My sister eats the candy (that) my mother buys for my baby brother.)
          ('que' is the direct object of 'achète' (the subject is 'ma mère'))

  • 'que' replaces a repetition of 'les bonbons':
Ma soeur mange les bonbons.
 Ma mère achète les bonbons pour mon petit frère.
\/    

Ma soeur mange les bonbons que ma mère achète pour mon petit frère.)

Maman a lu le journal que j'écris depuis toujours.
(Mom read the diary (that) I've been keeping forever.)
           ('que' is the direct object of 'écris'; the subject is 'j'')

  • 'que' replaces a repetition of 'le journal':
Maman a lu le journal
  J'écris le journal depuis toujours.
\/       

Maman a lu le journal que j'écris depuis toujours.

 

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Things to watch out for:

1)

When deciding if a relative pronoun is the subject or object, make sure you're looking at the right verb. Since relative pronouns are a bridge between two clauses, you have to make sure you're looking at the relative clause, not the main clause. Sometimes this is fairly clear:

J'ai trouvé un portefeuille qui contenait trois cartes de crédit.
 main clause             |              relative clause              

Sometimes the word order can make this more difficult:

Le portefeuille que j'ai trouvé portait aussi une adresse.

main        |       relative        |           main                   

 

Here the main clause is split by the relative clause.

Generally, though, the relative pronoun will launch straight into the relative clause, will directly precede it.


2)

Even though 'qui' and 'que' do not show if they are masculine or feminine, singular or plural etc., this information is still 'stored' in them and must be respected. In other words, 'qui' can take a singular or a plural verb form:

Je suis allé à l'adresse, qui n'était pas loin.

('adresse' is singular)
J'ai trouvé la bonne maison, qui était blanche
et très grande.

('maison' is feminine)
J'ai donné les cartes de crédit, qui étaient
des cartes " platinum ", à un vieux monsieur.
('cartes' is plural)

And 'qui' doesn't even have to take a third person verb:

Je lui ai dit, " C'est moi qui ai trouvé votre portefeuille ", et il ne m'a même pas dit " merci ". ('moi' is first person)

 


3)

Relative pronouns are essential in French.  In English, they are optional:

For example:

The address that I had found in the wallet wasn't the address of the owner.
or
The address      I had found in the wallet wasn't the address of the owner.

But in French they are required:

L'adresse que j'avais trouvée dans le portefeuille n'était pas celle de son propriétaire.

You cannot omit the 'que' (or the 'qui', etc.).