In French, the relative pronouns "à qui" and "auquel / à laquelle / etc" are used to introduce relative clauses with prepositional verbs or verbal expressions with à. Let's learn when to use which.
How to use "à qui" or "auquel / à laquelle" in French
Look at these sentences:
La fille à laquelle je pense est belle.The girl (whom) I am thinking about is beautiful.
(Faire peur à = to scare [someone/something])
Le chat, à qui tu as fait peur, s'est caché sous le lit.
The cat which you scared hid under the bed.
There are two ways to introduce relative clauses with the preposition à:
- à qui (about whom / to whom), which can only apply to living things
- The contracted forms of à + le / la / l' / les + quel: auquel / à laquelle / auxquels / auxquelles (which)
- Note that these forms agree in gender and number with the object they refer to.
ATTENTION:
You can never have à or auquel at the end of the clause like in English:
La fille qui je pense à / La fille laquelle je pense à
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Examples and resources
Le chat, à qui tu as fait peur, s'est caché sous le lit.
The cat which you scared hid under the bed.
La fille à laquelle je pense est belle.The girl (whom) I am thinking about is beautiful.
Mes amis, auxquels j'écris régulièrement, viennent me voir bientôt.My friends, to whom I write regularly, are coming over soon.
Marie et Juliette, auxquelles tu as menti, sont furieuses.Marie et Juliette, to whom you lied, are furious.