I'm your lesson assistant. Ask me to explain any concept, drill you on the grammar, or give you extra practice for what you're studying right now.
Shared by Colombia Conversa learners and visitors. Every submission is reviewed before publication.
Loading approved comments…
You can say "I have a friend. She lives in Cartagena." But a fluent speaker says: "Tengo una amiga que vive en Cartagena." Relative clauses are the connective tissue that turns choppy, simple sentences into smooth, sophisticated ones. They are the difference between sounding like a textbook and sounding like a real speaker. In this lesson, you will master the six key relative pronouns that Colombian speakers use every day.
B1-B2 Language Objectives
Que is by far the most common relative pronoun in Spanish. It can refer to people or things, and it translates as "that," "which," or "who."
People: El hombre que habla es mi profesor. (The man who speaks is my professor.) Things: El libro que lei era interesante. (The book that I read was interesting.) Ideas: La idea que tienes es buena. (The idea that you have is good.)
Complete: 'La chica ___ trabaja aquí es de Medellín.'
'El restaurante ___ me recomendaste es excelente.'
You Cannot Drop 'Que' in Spanish
In English, you can drop "that" in many sentences: "The book I read" (instead of "The book that I read"). In Spanish, que is NEVER optional. You must always say "El libro que leí" -- never "El libro leí."
Quien (singular) and quienes (plural) refer only to people. They are most commonly used:
'La profesora ___ ___ hablé ayer es muy buena.' (The professor with whom I spoke)
'Mis amigos, ___ viven en Bogotá, vienen de visita.'
Donde means "where" and replaces place references in relative clauses.
'La tienda ___ compramos el café es muy famosa.'
Describing Your Neighborhood
Friend: ¿Como es el barrio donde vives? You: Es un barrio que queda en el norte. Hay un parque donde la gente corre por las mananas. La panaderia que esta en la esquina tiene los mejores pandebonos. Y el vecino con quien hablo mas es un senor que tiene tres perros.
Notice how relative clauses let you pack more information into each sentence without starting a new one every time.
Lo que refers to abstract ideas, entire situations, or unspecified things. It translates as "what" or "that which."
'No entiendo ___ quieres decir.' (I don't understand what you mean.)
'___ más me sorprendió fue la comida.' (What surprised me most was the food.)
These forms specify which one from a group:
'De todas las ciudades, ___ más me gustó fue Medellín.' (Of all cities, the one I liked most...)
Cuyo means "whose" and agrees in gender and number with the thing possessed (not the possessor).
'El profesor ___ clase tomé es excelente.' (The professor whose class I took...)
The Comma Changes the Meaning
Without comma (restrictive): Los estudiantes que estudiaron aprobaron el examen. = Only the students who studied passed. (Not all students - just the ones who studied.)
With comma (non-restrictive): Los estudiantes**,** que estudiaron**,** aprobaron el examen. = The students**,** who studied**,** passed the exam. (All the students studied, and all passed. The clause adds extra info.)
The comma changes the meaning entirely. Without it, the clause restricts which students. With it, the clause simply adds information about all of them.