Relative Pronouns
Connect or relate 2 clauses and refer to a person or thing in the 1st clause.
Relative Pronouns can be omitted in English, but NOT in Spanish.
Here are the most common relative pronouns:
1. Que: meaning that, which, who or whom
• Most common relative pronoun
• Refers to both people and objects
• It is the only relative pronoun that can be used without a preposition in defining relative clauses
Tuve un examen de español. El examen duró dos horas.
I had a Spanish exam. The exam lasted 2 hours.
Tuve un examen de español que duró dos horas.
I had a Spanish exam that lasted 2 hours.
2. Quien(es): meaning who or whom refers only to people and is commonly used after a preposition (a, de, con, para…)
• Refers to a person or people
• Agrees in number with its antecedent
• Can be used in defining relative clauses only if a preposition is present
Estas son las personas a quienes me dirigí cuando llegué.
These are the people whom I addressed when I got here.
Es el autor de quien te hablé.
He is the author I told you about.
3. El/la/cual, los/las cuales: meaning which for things, ideas, or general situations; or whom for people are used in case of uncertainty to clarify the antecedent.
Ayer leí varios poemas, entre los cuales se hallaban dos de Neruda.
Yesterday I read several poems; among them, two by Neruda.
**When the antecedent is introduced by the prepositions a, de, con or en; El/la cual, los/las cuales can be replaced by El/la/ que, los/las que **
La casa en la cual/la que nos encontramos, tiene más de cien años.
The house where we met is more than a 100yrs old.
4. Cuyo/a(s): meaning whose
• Refers to people or things
• It is always used together with a noun
• Agrees in gender and number with the person or thing it references
Compré una casa cuya dueña anterior ahora vive en Paris.
I bought a house whose previous owner now lives in Paris.
5. Lo que/lo cual: meaning what or that which, are neuter forms and refer to a previous idea, event, or situation.
Pepita dijo que entendía el subjuntivo, lo cual/lo que no nos extraño.
Pepita said that she understood the subjunctive, which didn’t surprise us.
Helpful notes:
1. After the prepositions a, de, en, and con USE que or el/la que, los/las que, el/la cual, or los/las cuales WHEN the antecedent is NOT a person.
Use quien or el/la + que/cual when the antecedent is a person.
La casa en la que vivo tiene tres pisos. OR La casa en que vivo tiene tres pisos.
The house in which I live has 3 floors.
La mujer con quien hablé es de Cali. Or La mujer con la que hablé es de Calí.
The woman with whom I spoke to is from Cali.
2. After all other prepositions, que must be used with a definite article.
Tengo un examen para el que tengo que estudiar mucho.
I have an exam for which I have to study hard.
La casa sobre la que te hablé sigue disponible.
The house on which I spoke to you about is still available.
3. The preposition can be omitted when it matches the one used before the antecedent.
En la casa en la que vivo hay fantasmas. En la casa la que vivo hay fantasmas.
Notice** IN English I can translate this as… In the house I live there are ghosts. OR In the house THAT I live in there are ghosts.
