How do I know which noun lequel agrees with?

The one it replaces, which is usually in the previous sentence. Tu as vu les photos ? Lesquelles ? Photos is feminine plural, so lesquelles. If you cannot identify the noun, you probably want quel with the noun spelled out.

When do I need lequel instead of qui or que?

After a preposition, when the thing referred to is not a person: le stylo avec lequel j’écris. For people, French uses qui, l’ami avec qui je voyage. Without a preposition, qui and que cover everything and lequel is not needed at all.

Do the contractions apply to every form?

To three of the four. Auquel, auxquels, auxquelles and duquel, desquels, desquelles all contract, but the feminine singular does not: à laquelle and de laquelle stay separate. That asymmetry is worth noting because it looks like an oversight and is not.

Which one to useB1

Quel vs lequel

The short answer

Quel comes before a noun: quel livre ? which book? Lequel stands in place of the noun: lequel ? which one? Both have four forms that agree with what they refer to, and only lequel contracts with à and de, giving auquel and duquel.

Or skip ahead and practise it now: poser une question, free, no signup.

At a glance

Quel or Lequel?

Compare	QuelBefore a noun. An adjective.	LequelInstead of a noun. A pronoun.
Position	In front of a noun	In place of one
Four forms	quel, quelle, quels, quelles	lequel, laquelle, lesquels, lesquelles
Pronunciation	All four sound identical	All four sound different
With à	No change: à quel moment	Contracts: auquel, auxquels
With de	No change: de quelle ville	Contracts: duquel, desquelles
With être	Quelle est la solution ?	Not used this way

How to choose

Ask these, in order

1
Is a noun coming right after it?
Quel, agreeing with that noun.
Quelle heure est-il ?
What time is it?
2
Is the noun already known and being left out?
Lequel, agreeing with the noun it stands for.
J’ai lu un de ses romans. Ah oui ? Lequel ?
I read one of his novels. Oh really? Which one?
3
Is there an à or a de in front?
Lequel contracts; quel does not.
Auquel de ces problèmes penses-tu ?
Which of these problems are you thinking of?
NBPenser à, so à + lequel, which contracts to auquel.
4
Are you asking “what is…” with être?
Quel, not qu’est-ce que. Quelle est ton adresse ? is the natural French.
Quel est le problème ?
What’s the problem?
NBQu’est-ce que le problème ? is not idiomatic here.

Side by side

Each one, in full

Quel

When to use quel

Before a noun. An adjective.

Quel behaves like any adjective: it sits before a noun and agrees with it. Quel jour, quelle semaine, quels résultats, quelles questions. All four forms are pronounced identically, so the agreement matters only in writing.

It also appears with être in a pattern English speakers often get wrong: quelle est la différence ? rather than qu’est-ce que la différence ? When the question asks for identification rather than definition, French uses quel.

Quels sont vos horaires ?

What are your opening hours?

Dans quelle ville habites-tu ?

Which city do you live in?

Quelle bonne idée !

What a good idea!

NBQuel also works as an exclamation, with no article.

Lequel

When to use lequel

Instead of a noun. A pronoun.

Lequel replaces a noun already established, and agrees with it: lequel for masculine singular, laquelle for feminine, lesquels and lesquelles for plurals. Unlike quel, all four are audibly different.

It also works as a relative pronoun after a preposition, where the thing referred to is not a person: le projet auquel je pense, la raison pour laquelle il est parti. With people, qui is used instead: la personne à qui je parle.

Laquelle de ces robes préfères-tu ?

Which of these dresses do you prefer?

La réunion à laquelle j’ai assisté était longue.

The meeting I attended was long.

C’est la raison pour laquelle j’ai refusé.

That’s why I refused.

NBA fixed and very common phrase, worth learning whole.

Mistakes to avoid

What learners actually get wrong

Lequel livre veux-tu ?
Quel livre veux-tu ?
A noun follows, so it takes quel. Lequel already contains the noun, which is why it can never sit in front of one.
À lequel penses-tu ?
Auquel penses-tu ?
À plus lequel contracts to auquel, exactly as à plus le gives au. The same happens with de: de plus lequel gives duquel.
Qu’est-ce que ton numéro de téléphone ?
Quel est ton numéro de téléphone ?
Asking for a specific piece of information about a noun takes quel with être. Qu’est-ce que asks for a definition instead, as in qu’est-ce que la liberté, and that is a different question.
Quelles est la solution ?
Quelle est la solution ?
Quel agrees with the noun it refers to, and la solution is singular. Because all four forms sound the same, this error is invisible in speech and very visible in writing.

Now use it

Poser une question

Rebuild questions with est-ce que and with inversion. Reading a rule and being able to apply it are different skills, and only one of them shows up when you speak.

20 questions
Instant feedback
No ads, no signup

Start the exercise

Questions

Asked and answered

How do I know which noun lequel agrees with?: The one it replaces, which is usually in the previous sentence. Tu as vu les photos ? Lesquelles ? Photos is feminine plural, so lesquelles. If you cannot identify the noun, you probably want quel with the noun spelled out.
When do I need lequel instead of qui or que?: After a preposition, when the thing referred to is not a person: le stylo avec lequel j’écris. For people, French uses qui, l’ami avec qui je voyage. Without a preposition, qui and que cover everything and lequel is not needed at all.
Do the contractions apply to every form?: To three of the four. Auquel, auxquels, auxquelles and duquel, desquels, desquelles all contract, but the feminine singular does not: à laquelle and de laquelle stay separate. That asymmetry is worth noting because it looks like an oversight and is not.

Keep going

Qui vs queA2Look at what comes straight after the word, not at what it means.