Usage note : what

As a pronoun

In questions

When used in questions as an object pronoun, what is translated by que or qu’est-ce que.

After que the verb and subject are inverted and a hyphen is placed between them :

what is he doing?

= que fait-il? or qu’est-ce qu’il fait?

When used in questions as a subject pronoun, what is translated by qu’est-ce qui :

what happened?

= qu’est-ce qui s’est passé?

Used with a preposition

After a preposition the translation is quoi.

Unlike in English, the preposition must always be placed immediately before quoi :

with what did she cut it? or what did she cut it with?

= avec quoi l’a-t-elle coupé?

To introduce a clause

When used to introduce a clause as the object of the verb, what is translated by ce que (ce qu’ before a vowel) :

I don’t know what he wants

= je ne sais pas ce qu’il veut

When what is the subject of the verb it is translated by ce qui :

tell me what happened

= raconte-moi ce qui s’est passé

For particular usages see A in the entry what.

As a determiner

what used as a determiner is translated by quel, quelle, quels or quelles according to the gender and number of the noun that follows :

what train did you catch?

= quel train as-tu pris?

what books do you like?

= quels livres aimes-tu?

what colours do you like?

= quelles couleurs aimes-tu?

For particular usages see B in the entry what.

Big English-French dictionary. 2003.