Example
El libro que leí es fascinante.
The book that I read is fascinating.
Note
The most frequent relative pronoun. Used for people and things in defining clauses.
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Connect clauses and avoid repetition using que, quien, el cual, lo que, cuyo, and donde. Use this page to study the core Spanish words, English meanings, part-of-speech labels, and example sentences for this topic.
Review each word with examples and usage notes where available.
El libro que leí es fascinante.
The book that I read is fascinating.
The most frequent relative pronoun. Used for people and things in defining clauses.
El profesor con quien estudié es famoso.
The professor with whom I studied is famous.
Use "quien" for people, especially after prepositions. Never used for things.
El que llegue primero gana el premio.
The one who arrives first wins the prize.
Agrees in gender and number with the antecedent. More emphatic than "que".
No entiendo lo que dices.
I don't understand what you're saying.
"Lo que" refers to a whole idea or something abstract — not a specific noun.
El edificio en el cual trabajo es antiguo.
The building in which I work is old.
Formal alternative to "que/quien". Must agree in gender and number. Used in writing.
El hombre cuyo coche fue robado llamó a la policía.
The man whose car was stolen called the police.
"Cuyo" agrees with the noun that follows it (not the owner). Mostly used in writing.
La ciudad donde nací es pequeña.
The city where I was born is small.
Relative "donde" refers to a place. Different from interrogative "¿dónde?" (with accent).
Todo lo que dijiste es verdad.
Everything that you said is true.
La razón por la que vine es importante.
The reason why I came is important.
La persona a quien busco no está.
The person whom I am looking for isn't here.
Personal "a" + quien for direct object people. Equivalent: "La persona que busco."