SYNTAX: RELATIVE CLAUSES

1. Relative clauses are divided into defining and non-defining, being que the most used relator.

2. A defining relative clause provides essential information about the noun to which it refers. It cannot be left out of the sentence without affecting the meaning.

la senyora que vas conèixer ahir es diu Maria	the lady you met yesterday is called Maria
la casa on vivim és a un bon barri	the house where we live is in a good neighbourhood

3. A non-defining relative clause provides information that can be left out without affecting the meaning or structure of the sentence. The added item is embedded among commas and just gives extra information.

el meu sobrí, que no té encara cinc anys, toca el piano molt bé	my nephew, who is not five year old yet, can play the piano very well
tinc un client nou, el qual no vol visitar-me a l’oficina	I’ve got a new customer, who doesn’t want to visit me at the office

4. Examples of both types of relative clauses. Observe how que takes an accent (què) whenever it is preceded by a preposition:

lo que dius és mentida	what you are saying is false
no sé què vol dir	I don’t know what he means
qui tingui diners, ha de pagar	whoever has money should pay
no sabia allò que m’has contat	I didn’t know what you’ve just told me
tinc un veí que fa molt de soroll	I’ve got a neighbour who makes a lot of noise
he vist com furtaven un cotxe al carrer	I’ve seen how a car was stolen on the street
la casa en què / on vivim és molt maca	the house in which/where we live is really nice
la pel·lícula de què em parles és japonesa, no?	the film you’re talking about is Japanese, isn’t it?
les eines amb què treballeu són modernes	the tools you work with are very modern
el meu cap, qui és poc intel·ligent, ens tracta malament	my boss, who is little intelligent, treats us very badly
aquest manual, del qual ens queden dues còpies, és una joia	this handbook, from which there are two copies left, is a marvel

el meu cosí, que encara no té cinc anys, toca el piano molt bé	my nephew, who is not five year old yet, can play the piano very well
tinc un client nou, el qual no vol visitar-me a l’oficina	I’ve got a new customer, who doesn’t want to visit me at the office

4. Examples of both types of relative clauses. Observe how que takes an accent (què) whenever it is preceded by a preposition:

el que dius és mentida	what you are saying is false
no sé què vol dir	I don’t know what he means
qui tingui diners, ha de pagar	whoever has money should pay
no sabia això que m’has contat	I didn’t know what you’ve just told me
tinc un veí que fa molt de soroll	I’ve got a neighbour who makes a lot of noise
he vist com furtaven un cotxe al carrer	I’ve seen how a car was stolen on the street
la casa en què / on vivim és molt maca	the house in which/where we live is really nice
la pel·lícula de què em parles és japonesa, no?	the film you’re talking about is Japanese, isn’t it?
les eines amb què treballeu són modernes	the tools you work with are very modern
el meu cap, que és poc intel·ligent, ens tracta malament	my boss, who is little intelligent, treats us very badly
aquest manual, del qual ens queden dues còpies, és una joia	this handbook, from which there are two copies left, is a marvel

5. As for the forms of relative pronouns, see interrogative and relative pronouns.