📖LearnModule 11 · Lesson 25 of 30Proficient User · CEFR C1, first halfUnit 5 · Rapporter et relier
Ce qui, ce que, ce dont
Module 11 of the free French course (CEFR C1, first half), lesson 25 of 30: When there is no noun to point at. On this page: 7 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's lesson 25.
The words
French
English
Say it
ce qui m'intéresse
what interests me
suh kee ma(n)-tay-REHS
ce que je veux
what I want
suh kuh zhuh VUH
ce dont j'ai besoin
what I need
suh doh(n) zhay buh-ZWA(n)
tout ce que je sais
all that I know
too suh kuh zhuh SEH
l'essentielmasculine — the article elides to l'
the essential point
leh-sah(n)-SYEHL
intéresser
to interest
a(n)-tay-reh-SAY
la chose
the thing
lah SHOHZ
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
Hear the words
Each word is read twice — say it back in the gap. Computer-generated voice; credits on the course page.
La règle · The rule
When there is no noun to point at, the relative goes neutral: ce qui m'intéresse (what interests me), ce que je veux (what I want), ce dont j'ai besoin (what I need).
Et aussi · And also
Pick by the verb, exactly as before: subject → ce qui, object → ce que, a verb taking de → ce dont. Tout ce que je sais is the phrase you will use most.
Attention · Watch out
ce qui, ce que, ce dont follow the verb: subject, object, verb with de. tout ce que je sais takes que because savoir takes a direct object.
Do it now — on paper
Say all 7 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the French spelling alone — begin with ce qui m'intéresse.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the French.
Write two sentences of your own that get the watch-out line right, then the two practice pages of workbook lesson 25 in Module 11 are the written half of this page.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The French Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.