il quale

Italian

Pronoun

il quale m (f la quale, m pl i quali, f pl le quali)

  1. whom; which; after a preposition
    Synonym: cui
    l'uomo con il quale parlothe man to whom I speak
  2. (rare) who; whom; which; that; subject or object
    Synonym: chi
    mia moglie, la quale è bellamy wife, who is beautiful
    la mia macchina, la quale ho vendutamy car, which I have sold

Usage notes

  • Used instead of cui after numerals and other quantifiers + di:
    quattro dei qualifour of which
  • Sometimes used when the invariant alternatives che or cui are ambiguous with respect to gender or number:
    Giovanni e Claudia, ai quali avevi parlatoGiovanni and Claudia, to both of whom you talked (plural and hence including all)
    Giovanni e Claudia, alla quale avevi parlatoGiovanni and Claudia, to the latter of whom you talked (feminine singular and hence including only Claudia)
  • Generally, use after a preposition is moderately common, while use as a subject or object is quite rare.
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