Ce qui, ce que, ce dont or ce à quoi: choose by rebuilding the sentence
Choose a French neutral relative with a four-row table, worked examples and a short quiz. Rebuild the verb with cela to find the missing role.
In short
Rebuild the small sentence with cela. Cela change gives ce qui change; tu changes cela gives ce que tu changes. Keep the verb’s preposition: avoir besoin de cela gives ce dont…, and penser à cela gives ce à quoi….
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When do you use ce qui, ce que, ce dont or ce à quoi?
| Rebuild it | Role of cela | Relative phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cela me plaît. | Subject | ce qui me plaît | what I like |
| Tu proposes cela. | Direct object | ce que tu proposes | what you suggest |
| Tu as besoin de cela. | Complement with de | ce dont tu as besoin | what you need |
| Tu penses à cela. | Complement with à | ce à quoi tu penses | what you are thinking about |
Use this family when you leave the thing unnamed. Compare le projet que tu proposes (the project you suggest) with ce que tu proposes (what you suggest). The named noun takes an ordinary relative; the unnamed reference takes ce plus the appropriate relative form.
Check the verb inside the relative
Je veux comprendre ce qui manque.
I want to understand what is missing.
Rebuild cela manque. The missing thing is the subject of manque, so choose ce qui.
Ce que tu proposes demande du temps.
What you suggest takes time.
Rebuild tu proposes cela. The thing is the object of proposes, so choose ce que, even though the whole phrase is the subject of demande.
Voici ce dont tu as besoin pour commencer.
Here is what you need to get started.
The construction is avoir besoin de quelque chose. Dont carries the link with de.
Je comprends ce à quoi tu penses.
I understand what you are thinking about.
The construction here is penser à quelque chose. Keep à before quoi.
An outside preposition has a different job
Je pense à ce que tu proposes.
I’m thinking about what you suggest.
The first verb gives je pense à…. Inside the relative, you still have tu proposes cela: direct object → que.
The meaning of the verb matters too. Je sais ce que tu penses concerns the content of someone’s thoughts or opinion. Je sais ce à quoi tu penses identifies their topic. Both are natural; choose the meaning you want to express.
- Ce qui tu proposes me plaît.Ce que tu proposes me plaît.
Tu is already the subject of proposes. The proposed thing is its direct object.
- Voici ce dont j’en ai besoin.Voici ce dont j’ai besoin.
Dont already represents de cela. The extra en repeats that complement.