Look at these sentences:
Les boutons de manchette desquels / dont il a envie sont trop chers.
The cuff links he wants (of which he has envy) are too expensive.
La fille de qui / de laquelle / dont il a peur habite ici.
The girl he is scared of (of whom he is scared) lives here.
Le garçon de qui / duquel / dont tu parles, est très gentil.
The boy you are speaking of (of whom you are speaking), is very nice.
Les chaussures desquelles/dont tu as besoin sont dans le placard.
The shoes (which) you need are in the cupboard.
To introduce relative clauses with the preposition 'de', there are three ways in French:
- dont
- de qui (of/about whom), which can only apply to living things
- The contracted forms of de + quel (of/about which): duquel / de laquelle / desquels / desquelles
Note: these forms agree in gender and number with the object they refer to
Note: you can never have de or duquel or dont at the end of the clause like in English.
e.g. you cannot say La fille qui je parle de / La fille laquelle je parle de / La fille je parle dont (The girl I'm speaking of)
See also Dont = Whose
Learn more about these related French grammar topics
Examples and resources
Les chaussures desquelles/dont tu as besoin sont dans le placard.
The shoes (which) you need are in the cupboard.
Le garçon de qui / duquel / dont tu parles, est très gentil.
The boy you are speaking of (of whom you are speaking), is very nice.
Les boutons de manchette desquels / dont il a envie sont trop chers.
The cuff links he wants (of which he has envy) are too expensive.
La fille de qui / de laquelle / dont il a peur habite ici.
The girl he is scared of (of whom he is scared) lives here.
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Arash
Kwiziq community member
29 April 2017
2 replies
De quoi
When do we use de quoi. For example can we say La fourchette de quoi tu te sers était à ma mère.
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
1/05/17
Actually, you never use "de quoi" in this context!
To refer to an object, you will always use "dont", and sometimes "de laquelle".
I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !
Max
Kwiziq community member
28/05/17
Ron
Kwiziq community member
20/04/17
- 2) dont -- Use dont if the subordinate clause needs an object introduced by de/d'. Such clauses may indicate possession or they may contain verbs which are followed by the preposition de. Some of these verbs include 'parler de' (to talk about); 'avoir besoin de' (to need); 'avoir peur de' (to be afraid of); 'tenir de' (to take after).
- 3) duquel -- The contracted forms of de + quel (of/about which): duquel / de laquelle / desquels / desquelles
Note: these forms agree in gender and number with the object they refer to
Note: you can never have de or duquel or dont at the end of the clause like in English.
e.g. you cannot say La fille qui je parle de / La fille laquelle je parle de / La fille je parle dont (The girl I'm speaking of)
Preposition Masculine singular Masculine plural Feminine singular Feminine plural
lequel lesquels laquelle lesquelles
with à auquel auxquels à laquelle auxquelles
with de duquel desquels de laquelle desquelles
Ron
Kwiziq community member
20/04/17
Lequel, lesquels, laquelle, lesquelles are pronouns, i.e. they are used in place of a noun. They are used to ask the questions 'which one?' or 'which ones?' They assume the number and gender of the nouns they replace and contract with the prepositions à and de.
Preposition Masculine singular Masculine plural Feminine singular Feminine plural
lequel lesquels laquelle lesquelles
with à auquel auxquels à laquelle auxquelles
with de duquel desquels de laquelle desquelles
Kevin
Kwiziq community member
28 February 2018
5 replies
Are these really equivalent?
Kevin
Kwiziq community member
28 February 2018
28/02/18
Dont for a phrasal verb : Le livre dont je t'ai parlé
Duquel/etc. for prepositions : Le livre au-dessus duquel j'ai renversé mon café
Chris
Kwiziq community member
28 February 2018
28/02/18
The distinction is a pretty complicated matter and depends also on the register you are using. Here is a page which explains it and also offers a little test in the end to check your understanding: https://www.francaisfacile.com/exercices/exercice-francais-2/exercice-francais-105504.php
-- Chris (not a native speaker)
Kevin
Kwiziq community member
28 February 2018
28/02/18
Chris
Kwiziq community member
6 March 2018
6/03/18
I don't see them as interchangeably equivalent. They serve a similar purpose but in some instances you need one where you can't substitute the other. I believe the site to which I postet the link in my previous post explains it pretty well.
-- Chris (not a native speaker).
Kevin
Kwiziq community member
7 March 2018
7/03/18