Interrogative pronouns — qui que lequel

In one line

Two questions decide which one you use: person or thing, and subject or object.

The forms on this page

The table

And the long forms that match them:

How to read the long forms:

First part — qui = person · que = thing Last part — qui = subject · que = object

qui est-ce qui → person, subject · qu'est-ce que → thing, object

English asks both of the same questions, just never at the same time. Who versus what is the person/thing axis; who versus whom is the subject/object axis, and English has all but abandoned the second. French keeps both live, which is why one English "what" corresponds to two French forms — qu'est-ce qui when it is the subject, que when it is the object.

Four cells, four examples

The "thing, subject" cell has no short form. ❌ Que se passe ? — this is the one cell where you are obliged to use the long form.

Which means Qu'est-ce qui has to be learnt as a unit, since English "what's happening?" is as short as "what are you doing?" and gives no warning that the two need different French.

quoi — after a preposition and at the end

que never comes after a preposition and never at the end of a sentence. In those positions it is quoi.

And note the word order: English puts the preposition at the end — "what are you thinking about?" — while French keeps it at the front: À quoi penses-tu ? Never Quoi penses-tu à ?

lequel — choosing among several

And contracting with à and de:

How it differs from quel:

English uses "which" for both — "which book?" and "which one?" — so the split has to be made deliberately: with a noun → quel; without one → lequel.

qui after a preposition — no long form needed

A long form is possible but heavy: À qui est-ce que tu parles ?

Again, the preposition stays at the front in French. English strands it at the end — "who are you talking to?" — and French does not allow that anywhere.

In an indirect question the form changes

qu'est-ce qui and qu'est-ce que become ce qui and ce que in an indirect question. The detail is in question-indirecte.

Examples

Common mistakes

Why the long forms were built