Breakdown of Lesquelles de ces stations sont les plus proches de notre appartement ?
être
to be
de
of
l'appartement
the apartment
le plus
the most
Questions & Answers about Lesquelles de ces stations sont les plus proches de notre appartement ?
What does lesquelles mean here, and why is it used?
Lesquelles means which ones.
It is used because:
- the speaker is choosing from a known group: de ces stations = among these stations
- the noun it refers to, stations, is plural and feminine
So:
- lequel = which one? (masculine singular)
- laquelle = which one? (feminine singular)
- lesquels = which ones? (masculine plural)
- lesquelles = which ones? (feminine plural)
Because stations is feminine plural, French uses lesquelles.
Why can’t I just say quelles de ces stations?
In standard French, quelles de ces stations is not the natural structure here.
French normally uses:
- Lesquelles de ces stations... ? = Which of these stations... ?
If you want to use quelles, you usually need the noun directly after it:
- Quelles stations sont les plus proches de notre appartement ?
So both of these work:
- Lesquelles de ces stations sont les plus proches de notre appartement ?
- Quelles stations sont les plus proches de notre appartement ?
But quelles de ces stations by itself is generally not the correct pattern.