Relative Clauses: Describing People and Things in Detail

What Are Relative Clauses?

Relative clauses are subordinate clauses that give more information about a noun. They begin with a relative pronoun and the verb goes to the end.

  • Das ist der Mann, der mir geholfen hat. (That's the man who helped me.)
  • Ich suche das Buch, das auf dem Tisch lag. (I'm looking for the book that was on the table.)

Relative Pronouns

The relative pronoun matches the gender and number of the noun it refers to. The case depends on the pronoun's function within the relative clause.

Table of Relative Pronouns

Case Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
Nominative der die das die
Accusative den die das die
Dative dem der dem denen
Genitive dessen deren dessen deren

How to Choose the Right Relative Pronoun

  1. Find the reference noun — which noun is being described?
  2. Determine the gender and number of that noun.
  3. Determine the case — what role does the pronoun play inside the relative clause?

Relative Clauses in the Nominative

The relative pronoun is the subject of the relative clause.

  • Das ist die Frau, die in Berlin wohnt. (That's the woman who lives in Berlin.)
  • Ich kenne den Mann, der Spanisch spricht. (I know the man who speaks Spanish.)
  • Das Kind, das dort spielt, ist mein Neffe. (The child who is playing there is my nephew.)
  • Die Leute, die hier arbeiten, sind sehr nett. (The people who work here are very nice.)

Relative Clauses in the Accusative

The relative pronoun is the accusative object of the relative clause.

  • Der Film, den ich gestern gesehen habe, war spannend. (The film that I saw yesterday was exciting.)
  • Die Tasche, die sie gekauft hat, ist rot. (The bag that she bought is red.)
  • Das Geschenk, das er bekommen hat, war teuer. (The gift that he received was expensive.)
  • Die Bücher, die ich lese, sind auf Deutsch. (The books that I read are in German.)

Relative Clauses in the Dative

The relative pronoun is the dative object of the relative clause.

  • Der Freund, dem ich geholfen habe, heißt Markus. (The friend whom I helped is called Markus.)
  • Die Kollegin, der ich das Buch gegeben habe, war dankbar. (The colleague to whom I gave the book was grateful.)
  • Das Kind, dem wir das Spielzeug geschenkt haben, hat sich gefreut. (The child to whom we gave the toy was happy.)
  • Die Nachbarn, denen ich die Blumen gebracht habe, waren überrascht. (The neighbours to whom I brought the flowers were surprised.)

Relative Clauses with Prepositions

When the relative clause contains a preposition, it goes before the relative pronoun. The case depends on the preposition.

  • Die Stadt, in der ich wohne, ist sehr schön. (The city in which I live is very beautiful.)
  • Der Stuhl, auf dem du sitzt, ist neu. (The chair on which you're sitting is new.)
  • Das Thema, über das wir gesprochen haben, war interessant. (The topic about which we spoke was interesting.)
  • Die Freunde, mit denen ich gereist bin, kommen aus Frankreich. (The friends with whom I travelled come from France.)

Relative Clauses with "wo"

For places, wo can replace a preposition + relative pronoun:

  • Die Stadt, wo ich geboren bin, liegt im Süden. (The city where I was born is in the south.)
  • Das Restaurant, wo wir gegessen haben, war ausgezeichnet. (The restaurant where we ate was excellent.)

Both forms are correct: - Die Stadt, in der ich wohne. = Die Stadt, wo ich wohne.

Relative Clauses with "was"

Was is used as a relative pronoun after:

  • alles, etwas, nichts, vieles, das (as a demonstrative pronoun)
  • an entire clause as reference

Examples

  • Alles, was er sagt, stimmt. (Everything that he says is true.)
  • Es gibt nichts, was mich stört. (There is nothing that bothers me.)
  • Das ist etwas, was ich nicht verstehe. (That is something that I don't understand.)
  • Er hat die Prüfung bestanden, was mich sehr gefreut hat. (He passed the exam, which made me very happy.)

Word Order in the Relative Clause

The verb always goes to the end of the relative clause:

  • Der Mann, der in München wohnt, ... (The man who lives in Munich...)
  • Das Buch, das ich gestern gekauft habe, ... (The book that I bought yesterday...)

With separable verbs, the verb stays together:

  • Der Zug, der um 8 Uhr abfährt, ... (The train that departs at 8 o'clock...)
  • Die Sendung, die gestern angekommen ist, ... (The delivery that arrived yesterday...)

Common Mistakes

  • Der Mann, was hier arbeitet, ... (wrong — "was" is only used after alles/nichts/etwas or whole clauses)

  • Der Mann, der hier arbeitet, ... (correct)

  • Die Frau, den ich kenne, ... (wrong — feminine requires "die")

  • Die Frau, die ich kenne, ... (correct)

  • Das Buch, das ich habe gelesen, ... (wrong — auxiliary must be at the very end)

  • Das Buch, das ich gelesen habe, ... (correct)

  • Der Freund, ich dem geholfen habe, ... (wrong — relative pronoun must come directly after the comma)

  • Der Freund, dem ich geholfen habe, ... (correct)

Relevance for the TELC B1 Exam

Relative clauses appear frequently in:

  • Language Elements — Inserting the correct relative pronoun in cloze texts
  • Reading Comprehension — Understanding longer sentences that contain relative clauses
  • Written Expression — Relative clauses make your texts more natural and complex (e.g. Ich schreibe Ihnen wegen der Wohnung, die ich im Internet gesehen habe. — I am writing to you about the apartment that I saw online.)

Memorize the table of relative pronouns and pay special attention to the difference between nominative and accusative!

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