La persona que… Spanish Relative Pronouns

In this post, we’ll look at Spanish relative pronouns, or pronombres relativos. Relative pronouns in any language are words that connect clauses – part of sentences – in order to make more complex sentences that give more information about a noun. First, we’ll define that further and give you plenty of examples both in English and Spanish so that the concept is clear. Then, we’ll tackle the most important Spanish relative pronouns so that you can see how each one is used. Finally, we’ll end with some practice exercises so that you can test yourself.

What is a Relative Pronoun?

First, let’s define our potentially confusing grammatical terms. A relative pronoun is a word that connects two parts of a sentence, which are known as clauses. Don’t be put off by the grammatical terminology, because you definitely know what these things are and use them all the time in your language. Take a look:

• El libro que compré es interesante.
  The book that I bought is interesting.
• Mi amiga, con quien cené, es de Argentina.
  My friend, who I had dinner with, is from Argentina.
  My friend, with whom I had dinner, is from Argentina.

The underlined words in Spanish and English are relative pronouns. Each one introduces a smaller descriptive sentence – a relative clause – that’s inside the larger sentence. You could take both of those relative clauses out, and still have complete sentences:

• El libro es interesante.
  The book is interesting.
• Mi amiga es de Argentina.
  My friend is from Argentina.

When you add relative clauses, you’re giving more information about a noun in the main sentence. In these two examples, that’s libro/book and amiga/friend. Which book? The one that I bought. Which friend? The one who’s from Argentina.

Spanish Relative Pronouns

Now that we’ve defined our terms, let’s take a look at the most common and important Spanish relative pronouns, one by one.

1. que

Que is by far the most common and flexible Spanish relative pronoun. It can refer to people, animals, or things, so you can translate it as that, which, who, whom, and so on. I can serve as the subject of the relative clause, or the direct object.

• El libro que está sobre la mesa es mío.
  The book that’s on the table is mine.
  que refers to a thing [book], and it acts as the subject in the relative clause
• El libro que estoy leyendo está en español.
  The book that I’m reading is in Spanish.
  que refers to a thing [book], and it acts as the direct object in the relative clause
• La mujer que llamó era mi madre.
  The woman who called was my mother.
  que refers to a person [woman], and it acts as the subject in the relative clause
• La mujer que viste es mi esposa.
  The person who you saw is my wife.
  que refers to a person [woman], and it acts as the direct object in the relative clause

¿Qué? vs Que…

Note that the relative pronoun que looks a lot like the question word ¿qué?, minus of course the accent. You’ll see a lot of that here. Question words carry accents in Spanish: ¿qué? ¿dónde? ¿quién? ¿quiénes? But the same words can be used as relative pronouns, which also happens a lot in English. When they’re used as relative pronouns, they are accent-less: que… donde… quien… quienes…

Keep the Que

A second point to make is that in English, you can often omit relative pronouns. In Spanish, you cannot. So keep the que.

• La casa que compraron es bonita.
  The house that they bought is pretty.
  The house they bought is pretty.

Do I need this information? Restrictive or Non-Restrictive

Before we continue, there’s just one more concept that will help you understand relative pronouns. Technically, there are two types: restrictive and non-restrictive clauses. These exist in English, too, demonstrated by the difference between that and which. Let’s focus on English first to work out this concept.

• The movie that we saw last night was fantastic. But the one last week was awful.
• That movie, which by the way we saw last night, is getting great reviews.

In the first example, you need the information contained in the relative clause that we saw last night to understand which movie the speaker means. Not the one from last week, but rather the one that we saw last night. In English, we use that to introduce restrictive relative clauses – relative clauses that are necessary to zero in on (or to “restrict”) the meaning of the noun being described. Not any old movie, not all the movies playing now, but the one that we saw last night.

In the second example, the fact that we saw the movie last night is not at all essential. It’s a nice-to-know piece of information, but it’s not a need-to-know piece of information. Notice that we use commas to set off the clause introduced by which, and we can even add a phrase like “by the way” or “incidentally” to really emphasize that this information is not essential. In English, we use which and commas to show that this is a non-restrictive clause.

Que is very versatile in Spanish. It can be used with people, things, animals, or abstract ideas. And it can be used with both restrictive and non-restrictive clauses. So, que is your easiest, go-to pronoun. But there are others, and for some of them the restrictive/non-restrictive distinction is important.

2. el que / la que / los que / las que

These relative pronouns can be used to refer to people or things. Grammatically, they can function as the subject, direct object, or object of a preposition in the relative clause. Their form depends on the gender and number of the noun they refer back to, el que for masculine singular, la que for feminine singular, and so on. With this set of pronouns, the restrictive/non-restrictive distinction comes into play.

Non-Restrictive

First, they can be used to introduce non-restrictive relative clauses, where they can serve as subject or direct object. This use is a bit like the one that or the one who in English. Notice that they’re set off by commas, and in speech, there’s a bit of a pause before the relative pronoun.

• El restaurante, el que está al lado del cine, es muy barato.
  The restaurant, (the one) that’s next to the movie theater, is really cheap. (subject)
• Esos tipos, los que conocí en la fiesta, son hermanos.
  Those guys, who are I met at the party, are brothers. (direct object)
• Las casas, las que están en venta, no tienen muy buenas vistas.
  The houses, (the ones) which are for sale, don’t have great views. (subject)

After Prepositions

Second, they can be used after prepositions, and in this use they usually have a restrictive sense, without commas or a pause.

• La ciudad a la que viajo es Guadalajara.
  The city to which I’m traveling/I’m traveling to is Guadalajara.
• Éstos son los niños de los que te hablé.
  These are the kids about whom I spoke to you.
• Perdí el cuchillo con el que cortamos el pan.
  I lost the knife that we cut bread with.

When referring to things (not people) in informal speech, que is sometimes used instead of el que after simple prepositions like en or de. But this has a very casual feel to it.

• La casa en que vivo es grande.
  The house I live in is big. (Less formal, but acceptable in casual language)
• La casa en la que vivo es grande.
  The house I live in is big. (More formal and preferred)

Identifying

Third, el que and its variants are used after ser to identify something. This is like the one that/who… in English.

• Juan es el que me lo dijo.
  Juan is the one who told me.
• Esta película es la que quiero ver.
  This film is the one I want to see.

3. quien / quienes

Quien and quienes both mean who (or whom) and refer only to people. Quien is for a singular person, and quienes is for plural people. They have two main uses in Spanish.

First, if you’re talking about a person or people, and if there’s a preposition involved, you can use quien. This is similar to English phrases like with whom, about whom, to whom, and so on. It has a restrictive sense, and a bit of a formal feel compared to con los que, etc.

• Los estudiantes con quienes hablé son muy inteligentes.
  The students with whom I spoke are very intelligent.
• La mujer con quien se casó es mi hermana.
  The woman whom he married is my sister.
• La persona a quien le compré este regalo está de cumpleaños.
  The person for whom I bought this gift is having a birthday.

Second, if you’re talking about a person in a non-restrictive sense, you can use quien or quienes with commas.

• Mi amigo, quien vive en Madrid, me visitará.
  My friend, who lives in Madrid, will visit me.
• Marta, quien se sienta a mi lado, es muy amable.
  Marta, who sits next to me, is very nice.

Quien(es) is often replaced with que in everyday speech. If there’s a preposition such as con or para involved, and the relative pronoun refers to a person, quien is preferred.

4. donde

Donde (where) is used to indicate a place, exactly in the same way that where has this use in English. Again, note the absence of accent: ¿dónde? is a question, and donde is a relative pronoun.

• La ciudad donde nací es hermosa.
  The city where I was born is beautiful.
• No encuentro el restaurante donde cenamos anoche.
  I can’t find the restaurant where we had dinner last night.

5. cuando

Cuando (when) is used for time expressions. Just like que and donde, it lacks an accent when used as a relative pronoun.

• Recuerdo el día cuando nos conocimos.
  I remember the day when we met.
• Fue un momento cuando todos estaban felices.
  It was a moment when everyone was happy.

6. cuyo / cuya / cuyos / cuyas

Cuyo and its variants mean whose. It agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies (not the owner), so cuyo is used for anyone as long as the thing possessed is masculine and singular. It is a formal way to indicate possession.

• El escritor cuyo libro leí ganó un premio.
  The writer whose book I read won an award.
• La niña cuya madre es doctora es muy inteligente.
  The girl whose mother is a doctor is very intelligent.
• El niño cuya madre acaba de estar aquí es mi alumno.
  The boy whose mother was just here is my student.
• La casa cuyas ventanas están cerradas está a la venta.
  The house, the windows of which are closed, is for sale.

Cuyo is fairly formal and not used much in spoken Spanish. It’s often replaced with other constructions to indicate possession in speech.

• La casa que tiene las ventanas cerradas está a la venta.
  The house that has the closed windows is for sale.

7. el cual / la cual / los cuales / las cuales

Now let’s turn to el cual / la cual / los cuales / las cuales, which are very similar to el que / la que / los que / las que. These forms must agree in gender and number with the noun they refer to. They are more formal than (el/la/los/las) que or quien and are often used in more complex sentences.

• La empresa, la cual fue fundada en 1990, ha crecido mucho.
  The company, which was founded in 1990, has grown a lot.
• Los estudiantes, los cuales aprobaron el examen, celebraron juntos.
  The students, who passed the exam, celebrated together.

el cual vs el que

Usually, el cual / la cual / los cuales / las cuales, and el que / la que / los que / las que are interchangable, although the former might sound a bit more formal. There are just a few cases when you should opt for el cual / la cual / los cuales / las cuales instead of el que / la que / los que / las que.

Grammatical Distance

First, if the relative is separated from the noun it refers to by a bunch of other words or pauses or some other kind of grammatical distance, el cual sounds better.  

• Hay un pequeño restaurante en mi ciudad, cerca de mi apartamento, la cual sirve comida mexicana fantástica.
  There’s a little restaurant in my town, near my apartment, that serves fantastic Mexican food.
• No entiendo al hombre del traje negro, el cual está hablando ahora.
  I don’t understand the man in the black suit, who is speaking now.

Preposition

Second, if there’s a preposition, especially one of more than one syllable, el cual sounds better.

• Ella tiene una casa en el campo, cerca de la cual hay muchos lugares hermosos.
  She has a house in the country, near to which there are many beautiful places.
• Paso la mayor parte del día en un escritorio, frente al cual hay una ventana con una hermosa vista.
  I spend most of my day at a desk, in front of which there’s a window with a beautiful view.

Quantity Expression

Third, if there’s some kind of quantity expression like muchos (many), algunos (some), la mitad de (half of), and so on, el cual sounds better.

• Estas personas, muchas de las cuales son mis amigos y vecinos, necesitan la ayuda del gobierno.
  These people, many of whom are my friends and neighbors, need the government’s help.
• Hablé con los estudiantes, algunos de los cuales no aprobarán la asignatura.
  I spoke to the students, some of whom will not pass the class.
• Acaban de comprar una casa nueva, la mitad de la cual no tiene electricidad.
  They just bought a new house, half of which doesn’t have electricity.

Practice A

Finally, let’s practice.

1. La película que vimos anoche fue increíble.
2. Mi amiga, quien vive en Madrid, vendrá a visitarme.
3. Los estudiantes, quienes llegaron tarde, perdieron el examen.
4. El hombre, cuyo coche es rojo, es mi vecino.
5. La escritora, cuya novela ganó un premio, dará una conferencia.
6. Este es el restaurante donde comimos el otro día.
7. Recuerdo el día cuando nos conocimos.
8. No entiendo el problema el que mencionaste antes.
9. Este es el libro sobre el cual te hablé.
10. La empresa para la cual trabajo es muy innovadora.

Practice B

Now complete the sentences with the best option, and translate.

1. La película ___ vimos anoche fue increíble. (quien, que, cuyo, donde)
2. Mi tía, ___ vive en Barcelona, nos visitará pronto. (que, cuyo, quien, cuando)
3. Los profesores, ___ tienen experiencia, explican mejor. (quien, quienes, que, cuyo)
4. El niño, ___ padre es médico, quiere estudiar medicina. (quien, que, cuyo, cuando)
5. Este es el parque ___ jugábamos cuando éramos niños. (donde, quien, cuyo, que)
6. No recuerdo el día ___ nos conocimos. (donde, cuando, que, cuyo)
7. Mi hermano, ___ vive en Francia, vendrá de visita. (el que, la que, los que, las que)
8. Ese es el coche en ___ estoy pensando comprar. (quien, que, el que, cuyo)
9. Este es el documento sobre ___ te hablé. (quien, cuyo, el cual, que)
10. La empresa en ___ trabajo es muy grande. (quien, la cual, cuyo, donde)
11. Mis amigos, ___ viven en México, me invitaron a visitarlos. (quien, los que, donde, cuyo)
12. La ciudad ___ nací es muy hermosa. (quien, que, donde, cuyo)
13. El hombre, ___ perro está perdido, está muy preocupado. (quien, cuyo, que, donde)
14. El libro ___ me recomendaste es muy interesante. (quien, cuyo, que, donde)
15. Los estudiantes, ___ llegaron tarde, no pudieron entrar a la clase. (quien, quienes, que, cuyo)
16. La profesora con ___ hablé ayer me explicó la tarea. (quienes, la que, cuyo, donde)
17. No olvides el momento ___ nos conocimos. (cuando, donde, quien, que)
18. El museo en ___ vimos la exposición era muy grande. (cuando, donde, quien, la que)
19. Mis primos, ___ viven en Argentina, vendrán a visitarnos pronto. (quien, los que, cuyo, que)
20. El examen sobre ___ hablamos será difícil. (quien, la cual, el cual, donde)
21. Las reglas bajo ___ debemos trabajar son muy estrictas. (quien, las que, cuyo, donde)
22. Las ideas, _____ discutimos ayer, eran muy interesantes. (quien, cuyas, las que, la que)

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Practice A

1. The movie that we watched last night was amazing.
2. My friend, who lives in Madrid, will come to visit me.
3. The students, who arrived late, missed the exam.
4. The man, whose car is red, is my neighbor.
5. The writer, whose novel won a prize, will give a lecture.
6. This is the restaurant where we ate the other day.
7. I remember the day when we met.
8. I don’t understand the problem that you mentioned before.
9. This is the book about which I told you.
10. The company for which I work is very innovative.

Practice B

1. La película que vimos anoche fue increíble.
2. Mi tía, quien vive en Barcelona, nos visitará pronto.
3. Los profesores, quienes tienen experiencia, explican mejor.
4. El niño, cuyo padre es médico, quiere estudiar medicina.
5. Este es el parque donde jugábamos cuando éramos niños.
6. No recuerdo el día cuando nos conocimos.
7. Mi hermano, el que vive en Francia, vendrá de visita.
8. Ese es el coche en el que estoy pensando comprar.
9. Este es el documento sobre el cual te hablé.
10. La empresa en la cual trabajo es muy grande.
11. Mis amigos, los que viven en México, me invitaron a visitarlos.
12. La ciudad donde nací es muy hermosa.
13. El hombre, cuyo perro está perdido, está muy preocupado.
14. El libro que me recomendaste es muy interesante.
15. Los estudiantes, quienes llegaron tarde, no pudieron entrar a la clase.
16. La profesora con la que hablé ayer me explicó la tarea.
17. No olvides el momento cuando nos conocimos.
18. El museo en donde vimos la exposición era muy grande.
19. Mis primos, los que viven en Argentina, vendrán a visitarnos pronto.
20. El examen sobre el cual hablamos será difícil.
21. Las reglas bajo las que debemos trabajar son muy estrictas.
22. Las ideas, las que discutimos ayer, eran muy interesantes.

Translations

1. The movie that we watched last night was amazing.
2. My aunt, who lives in Barcelona, will visit us soon.
3. The teachers, who have experience, explain better.
4. The boy, whose father is a doctor, wants to study medicine.
5. This is the park where we used to play when we were kids.
6. I don’t remember the day when we met.
7. My brother, the one who lives in France, will come to visit.
8. That is the car in which I’m thinking of buying.
9. This is the document about which I told you.
10. The company in which I work is very big.
11. My friends, the ones who live in Mexico, invited me to visit them.
12. The city where I was born is very beautiful.
13. The man whose dog is lost is very worried.
14. The book that you recommended to me is very interesting.
15. The students, who arrived late, couldn’t enter the class.
16. The teacher with whom I spoke yesterday explained the homework to me.
17. Don’t forget the moment when we met.
18. The museum where we saw the exhibition was very big.
19. My cousins, the ones who live in Argentina, will come to visit us soon.
20. The exam about which we talked will be difficult.
21. The rules under which we must work are very strict.
22. The ideas, the ones we discussed yesterday, were very interesting.

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