Log inSign up

La fourmi qui marche lentement porte un grand morceau de pain.

La fourmi qui marche lentement porte un grand morceau de pain.
The ant that walks slowly carries a large piece of bread.
From Lesson 123:Subject relative pronouns (qui)·French

Questions & Answers about La fourmi qui marche lentement porte un grand morceau de pain.

Why do we use qui here instead of que?
We use qui because it acts as the subject of the verb that follows it. In this sentence, the ant is the one doing the walking (marche). If the ant were the object of the action (for example, the ant que I see), we would use que instead.
Doesn't qui usually mean "who"? Why is it translated as "that" here?
You are right that qui means "who" in a question or when referring to a person. However, as a relative pronoun connecting two parts of a sentence, qui is used for people, animals, and things alike as long as it is the subject. For an animal or object, "that" or "which" sounds more natural in English.
Why does grand come before morceau?
Most French adjectives come after the noun, but a small group of common, short adjectives goes before the noun. These usually describe Beauty, Age, Number, Goodness, or Size (often remembered as the BANGS rule). Since grand describes size, it comes before morceau.
Why is it un morceau de pain and not un morceau du pain?
When you use a phrase that expresses a specific quantity, like un morceau (a piece), un verre (a glass), or beaucoup (a lot), it is always followed by just de or d'. You drop the definite article that would normally combine with de to make du.

Learn La fourmi qui marche lentement porte un grand morceau de pain and more in French

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning French →