Can you please spell out the difference between using que/qui and ce qui/ce que

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Bonjour Steven !

Do you mean when to use "quE" vs "quI", or "CE que/CE qui" vs "QUE/QUI" ?

Cordially

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The latter...Ce que/ce qui vs que/qui -I think I'm getting a better grasp of this..I have studied it more now than when I asked the question...and it is becoming clearer...but  I have to pause and think a lot before answering...perhaps your clarification would add to my 'nailing it'...merci...Steve

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Bonjour Steve !
 
Both "ce que/ce qui" and "que/qui" are pronouns, which means they repeat something previously stated.
"The table *that* I bought." -> here *that* repeats "table"

The difference between "ce que" and "que" is what they're referring to.
As we explained in the related lesson, "que"(which/that) replaces a noun, whereas "ce que"(what/which) replaces a whole clause (i.e. containing a verb):
"*I eat a lot of bread*, which makes me bloated."  
-> Here it's the whole statement which is repeated in "which" (It's the fact that I eat too much bread that makes me bloated) = ce qui
Je mange beaucoup de pain, ce qui me ballone.
"I love *the dog* that you got for me."
-> Here it's only "the dog" which is repeated in "that" (you got me the dog) = que
J'adore le chien que tu m'as offert.

I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !

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Thanks Aurélie...getting it a lot more...had made a little page summarising the appropriate rules info...which you have just reiterated...so will go over it until it is second nature...thank you...Steve

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The difference between qui and ce qui you haven't mentioned...if you can please clarify and I can move on...Steve... Ce qui is before a verb and refers also to the whole sentence - qui also refers to the preceding noun...so what is the difference here between use of que or qui )))

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I guess that que refers to the preceding noun and what follows is a pronoun...with qui -this refers to the preceding noun but is followed by a verb...is that correct?

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Oui exactement Stephen, vous avez parfaitement compris !

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Merci beaucoup !!!!