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ce qui / ce que
Think about how, in English, we use the word
“what” when not asking a question.
Take a moment to jot down a complete sentence,
that uses “what,” outside of the context of a
question.


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
I’m appalled by what happened in Paris on 13
November, 2015.
What drives me crazy about Joe is the fact that
he does not wear deodorant.
A red bicycle – that’s what I want for
Christmas.
Love is what makes the world go round!
This “what,” not in the form of a question, is
called a relative pronoun. In French, this weird
“what” is rendered using the phrases
 ce qui
 ce que
 ce dont
For the moment, we are going to concentrate only
on ce qui/ce que, and deciding which one to
use.
Deciding on ce qui or ce que depends upon
knowing the parts of the sentence. Does the
pronoun (the “what”) refer to the subject or the
object?
If it is the subject, use ce qui.
If it is the object, use ce que.
First of all, can you label the subject and object of
a the following sentence?
The man is writing a letter.
The subject is the noun(s) or pronoun(s) in the
sentence that is “acting,” or performing the
verb.
The object is the noun(s) or pronoun(s) being
acted upon, or the verb is being performed
upon
The man is writing a letter.
“The man” is the subject of this sentence, because
he is acting, or performing the verb of writing.
“A letter” is the object because the verb of writing
is being performed upon it.
Just for good measure, label the subject and object
of each of the following sentences.
1. The train has a hundred passengers.
2. My grandmother and grandfather love to play
chess.
3. Americans eat too many hamburgers.
4. Sarah, Greg and Maureen know Tom, Lillian and
Felix.
5. I do not want a pony.
6. “Yes,” said Mike.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The train has a hundred passengers.
My grandmother and grandfather love to play
chess.
Americans eat too many hamburgers.
Sarah, Greg and Maureen know Tom, Lillian and
Felix.
I do not want a pony.
“Yes,” said Mike.
**Subject in pink / Object in blue
Ask yourself: does the pronoun (the “what”) refer to
the subject or the object?
If it is the subject, use ce qui.
 If it is the object, use ce que.

“Baseline” sentence: The train has a hundred passengers
Sentences with relative pronouns:

What has a hundred passengers is the train.

What the train has is a hundred passengers.
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
If it is the subject, use ce qui.
If it is the object, use ce que.
“Baseline” sentence: The train has a hundred passengers.
Le train a cent passagers.
What has a hundred passengers is the train.


Ce qui a cent passagers, c’est le train.
What the train has is a hundred passengers.


Ce que le train a, c’est cent passagers.
As you try to translate these examples, it will
probably help if you rephrase them into “baseline”
sentences – very basic subject-verb-object
sentences – in order to know whether the “what”
refers to the subject or the object. From there,
decide ce qui or ce que.
**Sometimes, not all of the information is there, so you
have to fill in the blanks with your imagination before
you can form a baseline sentence. (You’ll see what I
mean in the next few slides.)
What makes Christmas special is family.
I’m your wife; I love what you love!
Homework is what takes up most of my time.
We are sad because of what happened.
Don’t judge what I eat!
What makes Christmas special is family.
(The “what” refers to family.)
Baseline: Family makes Christmas special.
(Family is the subject, as it is “performing” the
verb makes.)
Ce qui fait le Noël spécial, c'est la famille.
I’m your wife; I love what you love!
**It would probably help if you decide, You love
swimming, for example.
(The “what” refers to swimming.)
Baseline: I love swimming.
(Swimming is the object, as it is being acted upon,
it is being loved.)
Je suis ton épouse; j'aime ce que tu aimes.
Homework is what takes up most of my time.
(The “what” refers to homework.)
Baseline: Homework takes up most of my time.
(Homework is the subject, as it is “performing” the
verb takes.)
Le devoir est ce qui prend la plupart de mon temps.
We are sad because of what happened.
**It would probably help if you decide that “violence
happened,” for example.
(The “what” refers to violence.)
Baseline: Violence happened.
(Violence is the subject, as it is “performing” the verb
happened. Note that there are two verbs in this
sentence.)
Nous sommes tristes à cause de ce qui est arrivé.
Don’t judge what I eat!
**It would probably help if you decide, I eat
potato chips, for example.
(The “what” refers to potato chips.)
Baseline: I eat potato chips.
(Potato chips is the object, as it is being acted upon,
it is being eaten.)
Ne jugez pas ce que je mange.
Do you know the difference between a
noun/pronoun and a verb? Sometimes you
can figure out whether to use ce qui or ce que
based on what comes after the “what.”
If a verb comes next, use ce qui.
If a noun or a pronoun comes next, use ce que.
What makes Christmas special is family.
I’m your wife; I love what you love!
Homework is what takes up most of my time.
We are sad because of what happened.
Don’t judge what I eat!
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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8.
9.
10.
What my brother hates is math class.
I don’t know what broke in the kitchen.
Fish is what the cat eats.
Spanish is what they speak when they are together.
They say that love is what makes the world turn.
The iPod is what plays music the best.
The Holocaust is what we’re studying in history class.
College is what costs the most!
Her lunch and her sunglasses are what she has in her
backpack!
What we’re watching is a film about birds.
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2.
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10.
My brother hates math class.
Something broke in the kitchen.
The cat eats fish.
They speak Spanish.
Love makes the world turn.
The iPod plays music the best.
We’re studying the Holocaust in history class.
College costs the most.
She has her lunch and sunglasses in her backpack.
We’re watching a film about birds.
1. What my brother hates is math class.
 Ce que mon frère déteste est la classe des maths.
2.
I don’t know what broke in the kitchen.

Je ne sais pas ce qui a cassé dans la cuisine.
3. Fish is what the cat eats.
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Le poisson est ce que le chat mange.
4. Spanish is what they speak when they are together.

L’espagnol est ce qu’ils parlent quand ils sont
ensemble
5. They say that love is what makes the world turn.

On dit que l’amour est ce qui fait tourner le monde.
6. The iPod is what plays music the best.

Le iPod est ce qui joue mieux de la musique.
7. The Holocaust is what we’re studying in history class.

L’Holocauste est ce que nous étudions en classe
d’histoire.
8. College is what costs the most!

L'université est ce qui coûte le plus.
9. Her lunch and her sunglasses are what she has in her
backpack!

Son déjeuner et ses lunettes de soleil sont ce qu'elle a
dans son sac-à-dos.
10. What we’re watching is a film about birds.

Ce que nous regardons est un film des oiseaux.
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10.
Pizza is what I prefer.
Your scarf is what makes you warm.
A big dinner is what’s waiting for me at home.
Too many people is what we don’t want.
Rock music is what they listen to when they’re
angry.
What gives me courage is my family.
If sport is not what you love, then why do you
play baseball?
She’s a cat – sleeping is what she does.
What really cleans the kitchen is “Comet.”
Do what you have to do.