Breakdown of La pioche du jeu, laquelle est vide, est sur la table.
être
to be
la table
the table
sur
on
de
of / from / any (in negative sentences) / about (concerning)
le jeu
the game (board game, video game, etc.)
vide
empty
lequel
which (masculine singular, feminine laquelle, plural lesquels, lesquelles)
la pioche
the draw pile
Questions & Answers about La pioche du jeu, laquelle est vide, est sur la table.
Why use laquelle here instead of just qui?
Usually, qui is used as the subject of a relative clause. However, in the phrase La pioche du jeu, using qui could be grammatically ambiguous because it immediately follows the masculine noun le jeu. By using the feminine singular laquelle, it explicitly points back to the feminine noun la pioche, making it perfectly clear what is empty.
I learned that une pioche is a pickaxe. Why is it translated as draw pile here?
You are right about the standard everyday meaning! However, in the context of card games and board games, la pioche is the specific vocabulary word used for the draw pile or the deck of cards that players draw from.
If I actually meant that the game itself was empty, how would the sentence change?
Are the commas around laquelle est vide strictly necessary here?
Yes. Just like in English, the commas indicate that this is a non-defining relative clause, meaning it simply adds extra descriptive information about the draw pile. Because laquelle acts as a descriptive aside here, the commas are required to separate it from the main sentence La pioche du jeu est sur la table.
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