Lecture Notes: Understanding Italian Relative Pronouns "Che" and "Cui"

Introduction

• Presenter: Stefano, Italian teacher for foreigners
• Subject: Relative Pronouns in Italian
• Main Focus: "che" and "cui"

Relative Pronouns Overview

• Purpose: Link two sentences to avoid repetition
• They introduce a new sentence adding information about a word in the main clause

Using "Che"

• Function: Used when the word being replaced in the relative sentence is a subject or object
• Example 1:
  • Sentences: "The guys are nice" and "I met the guys at the cinema"
  • Combined: "The guys I met at the cinema are nice"
• Example 2:
  • Sentences: "The ladies are my mom's friends" and "The ladies were at the bar"
  • Combined: "The ladies who were at the bar are my mom's friends"

Transitioning to "Cui"

• Function: Used when the word being replaced has any function other than subject or object
• Rule: "Cui" is preceded by a preposition
• Example:
  • Sentences: "The children lived near my house" and "I played with the children"
  • Verb "play" requires "with", so use "cui"
  • Combined: "The children with whom I played lived near my house"

Importance of Prepositions

• Prepositions are determined by the verb in the relative sentence
• Determines whether to use "che" or "cui"

Examples with Prepositions

• Example 1:
  • Sentences: "I finished the book" and "I talked about the book"
  • Verb "talk about" requires "of"
  • Combined: "The book I told you about last week is finished"
• Example 2:
  • Sentences: "The city is far" and "Luca comes from the city"
  • Verb "come" requires "from"
  • Combined: "The city from which Luca comes is far"

Special Functions of "In Cui"

• Time Function: Can mean "when"
  • Example: "The day I was born was hot" can be "The day in cui I was born was hot"
• Place Function: Means "where"
  • Example: "The city where I was born is in southern Italy" can be "The city in cui I was born is in southern Italy"

Future Topics

• Other relative pronouns: "quello che" and "chi"
• Invitation to comment for more content

Conclusion

• Encouragement to like the video to support the channel
• Subscribe for more lessons
• Follow on Instagram @teacherstefano for updates

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A hug from Italy, bye!