Learn French: Les coussins sur lesquels nous dormons sont très doux. - The cushions on which we sleep are very soft.

Les coussins sur lesquels nous dormons sont très doux.

The cushions on which we sleep are very soft.

Breakdown of Les coussins sur lesquels nous dormons sont très doux.

we / us (object pronoun)

Questions & Answers about Les coussins sur lesquels nous dormons sont très doux.

Why do we use lesquels here instead of lequel?

The relative pronoun lequel has to agree in gender and number with the noun it replaces. Here, it refers back to Les coussins, which is masculine plural, so it becomes lesquels. We use these forms after simple prepositions like sur to mean "on which".

Could we use où in this sentence instead of sur lesquels?

Yes! Because you are talking about a physical location where you sleep, you could absolutely say Les coussins où nous dormons (The cushions where we sleep). Using sur lesquels is just a bit more precise and formal.

Can I translate "The cushions we sleep on" directly and put sur at the end of the clause?

No, French never allows a "hanging" preposition at the end of a sentence or clause like we do in everyday English. The preposition must always immediately precede the relative pronoun, which is why it must be structured as sur lesquels (on which).

Why is the adjective doux spelled with an 'x' here? Is it plural?

Yes, it is plural to agree with the masculine plural noun Les coussins. However, the masculine singular form of "soft" is also doux. In French, if a masculine singular noun or adjective already ends in -s, -x, or -z, its spelling does not change in the plural.