Relative clauses I: que, quien, donde, lo que

What it is

A relative clause (oración de relativo) adds information about a noun, the way an adjective does: el chico alto → el chico que vive aquí. The noun is the antecedent (antecedente), and the word that links it to the new clause is the relative pronoun (pronombre relativo). At B1 you need four of them:

• El chico que vive aquí es de Lima.The boy who lives here is from Lima.que = who
• El libro que compré ayer es muy bueno.The book (that) I bought yesterday is very good.que = that, which
• La ciudad donde nací está en el norte.The city where I was born is in the north.donde = where
• Lo que más me gusta es la comida.What I like most is the food.lo que = what

In this topic the verb of the relative clause is in the indicative, because it describes people, things and places that exist and that you can identify.

How to form it

Put the relative right after the noun, then a complete clause with its own verb. The relative is never optional: where English says "the book I bought", Spanish says el libro que compré.

• que is the all-purpose relative. It works for people and things and never changes form.
• quien has a plural, quienes, and at this level it comes after a preposition: con quien, para quienes. Directly after a noun, use que: la chica que vive aquí, not la chica quien vive aquí.
• The preposition goes first. If the verb in the clause needs a preposition (hablar con, hablar de, vivir en, nacer en), that preposition moves to the front of the relative: la chica con quien hablé, el tema del que hablamos (de + el que = del que). Spanish never leaves it at the end of the clause, and never drops it.
• donde replaces en el que / en la que for places: la casa donde vivo = la casa en la que vivo. It has no written accent.
• lo que has no noun in front of it. It means "what" (the thing that) and, after a comma, "which" when it refers to a whole idea.

When to use it

To identify people and things, much as you would by pointing at them: ¿Ves al señor que está en la puerta? Es mi profesor. This is the everyday use in conversations and messages: el paquete que llegó, la vecina que te saludó.

To say where something happens: el café donde trabaja Ana, el parque donde nos conocimos.

To talk about the people you do something with, or for: la señora con quien vivía en Quito, los clientes para quienes trabajo.

To point to an idea or a whole situation with lo que:

• Lo que necesito es dormir.What I need is sleep.lo que = the thing that
• No entendí lo que dijo.I didn't understand what he said.after a verb
• Gracias por todo lo que hiciste.Thanks for everything you did.todo lo que = everything (that)
• Nadie contestó el teléfono, lo que me pareció raro.Nobody answered the phone, which seemed strange to me.refers to the whole sentence

Contrasts and traps

• que, not quien, right after a noun. Tengo una amiga que vive en Bogotá. English "who" pulls learners towards quien, but without a preposition the answer is que.
• que or lo que? que needs a noun before it; lo que stands alone: la comida que preparaste / lo que preparaste. And "what" in this sense is never qué: Lo que más me gusta…, not Qué más me gusta…
• Keep the preposition, and put it first. La ciudad donde (en la que) nací, la profesora de quien te hablé, el amigo con quien viajé. Never la ciudad que nací, never el amigo que viajé con.
• donde or dónde? No accent in a relative clause (el barrio donde vivo); an accent in questions, direct or indirect (¿Dónde vives?, No sé dónde vive).
• Known or unknown? When the person or thing is not known yet, or may not exist, the relative clause takes the subjunctive: Busco a alguien que hable ruso. That is Relative clauses II (B2). At B1, describe people and things you know, with the indicative.

If you also speak Portuguese

Portuguese relatives line up almost one to one: que = que, quem = quien, onde = donde, o que = lo que. The trap is spoken Brazilian Portuguese, which often drops the preposition (a cidade que eu nasci, a pessoa que eu te falei). Spanish always keeps it, in front of the relative: la ciudad donde nací, la persona de quien te hablé.