what is it?
A relative clause is a subordinate clause that gives more information about a noun (the antecedent) in the main clause. It is introduced by a relative pronoun — a form of der / das / die — and is set off from the rest of the sentence by commas. The relative pronoun agrees with the antecedent in gender and number, but its case is determined by the role it plays inside the relative clause. The verb moves to the end of the relative clause.
when to use it
Nominative relative pronoun: use this when the relative pronoun is the subject of the relative clause — i.e. it performs the action of the verb inside that clause.
Accusative relative pronoun: use this when the relative pronoun is the direct object of the verb inside the relative clause — i.e. something is done to it.
The trigger is always the antecedent noun in the main clause: its gender and number fix the pronoun form, while its syntactic role inside the relative clause fixes the case.
formation
The relative pronouns for nominative and accusative are identical to the definite article for most forms. The only difference appears in the masculine accusative, which is den (not der).
| gender / number | nominative | accusative |
|---|---|---|
| masculine (der) | der | den |
| neuter (das) | das | das |
| feminine (die) | die | die |
| plural (die) | die | die |
Word order inside the relative clause is always verb-final: the conjugated verb moves to the very end. The relative clause is enclosed in commas — one before the relative pronoun and one after the final verb (or after the last word of the clause if it continues into more main-clause material).
Structure at a glance: [main clause noun], [relative pronoun] … [verb], [rest of main clause if any].
examples in context
common pitfalls
Ignoring the pronoun's role inside the clause. The gender and number come from the antecedent, but the case comes from the function inside the relative clause. Writing «*der Film, der ich gesehen habe» is wrong because Film is masculine (→ der/den) but the pronoun is the direct object of sehen, so the accusative form den is required: der Film, den ich gesehen habe.
Forgetting verb-final order. In a relative clause the conjugated verb must go to the end. «*Das Buch, das ich lese gerade» is incorrect. The adverb gerade does not push the verb out of final position: Das Buch, das ich gerade lese.
Dropping the closing comma. When the relative clause ends before the main clause continues, a comma is required after the last word of the relative clause. «*Der Mann, der dort steht ist mein Vater» is missing the comma after steht. Correct: Der Mann, der dort steht, ist mein Vater.