How to Teach French DONT vs DUQUEL – A French Teacher’s Guide
When I teach French relative pronouns, one of the distinctions I want students to understand is the difference between dont and the forms of duquel.
Both are connected to the preposition de, which is why students can have trouble deciding which one to use.
I make this distinction as simple as possible:
- Use a form of DUQUEL with prepositional phrases followed by DE.
- Use DONT with verbal phrases followed by DE.
The key is to identify the type of expression in the original sentence. Is de part of a prepositional phrase, such as à côté de or en face de? Or does it belong to a verbal phrase, such as avoir besoin de or parler de?
Once students learn to recognize the difference, they have a much clearer way to choose between dont and duquel.
French Relative Pronouns Lequel Auquel Duquel – Foldable Reference Booklet
French Relative Pronouns Qui, Que, Où, Dont – Foldable Lesson Handout Book
Looking for more resources to help you teach dont vs duquel? Scroll down to the section at the end of this post to see my ready-to-use resources for this topic.
Start with Prepositional Phrases
I begin with expressions students can picture easily, such as à côté de, meaning next to.
For example:
Mme Pascal est assise à côté de son mari.
Mrs. Pascal is sitting next to her husband.
Now I want to identify the man she is sitting next to:
L’homme à côté duquel Mme Pascal est assise est son mari.
The man Mrs. Pascal is sitting next to is her husband.
I point out that à côté de is a prepositional phrase. Because the phrase ends in de, we use a form of duquel.
The form here is duquel because mari is masculine singular.
This is the first rule I want students to remember: when DE belongs to a prepositional phrase, use a form of DUQUEL.
Teach More Prepositional Phrases with DUQUEL
Next, I give students several other prepositional phrases so they can recognize the pattern.
À droite de — to the right of
Mon appartement est situé à droite de la laverie.
My apartment is located to the right of the laundromat.
We can combine the sentences:
C’est la laverie à droite de laquelle mon appartement est situé.
This is the laundromat to the right of which my apartment is located.
Because laverie is feminine singular, we use de laquelle.
À gauche de — to the left of
Nous sommes garés à gauche du musée.
We are parked to the left of the museum.
C’est le musée à gauche duquel nous sommes garés.
This is the museum to the left of which we are parked.
Here, musée is masculine singular, so we use duquel.
À l’extérieur de — outside of
Vous vous trouvez à l’extérieur de l’École Notre Dame.
You are outside École Notre Dame.
L’école à l’extérieur de laquelle vous vous trouvez est Notre Dame.
The school you are standing outside of is Notre Dame.
Because école is feminine singular, we use de laquelle.
These examples reinforce the same idea. The prepositional phrase stays intact, and the form of duquel agrees with the noun it replaces.
Introduce Other Common Prepositional Phrases
Once students understand the first examples, I give them more expressions that follow the same rule.
| Prepositional phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| à l’intérieur de | inside of |
| au coin de | at the corner of |
| en dessous de | below, underneath |
| au-dessus de | above, over |
| en face de | in front of, facing, across from |
| près de | near, close to |
I use examples to show students how these expressions work in complete sentences.
À l’intérieur de
Mon portefeuille se trouve à l’intérieur de ce sac à main.
My wallet is inside this purse.
C’est le sac à main à l’intérieur duquel se trouve mon portefeuille.
It is the purse inside which my wallet is located.
Au coin de
La boulangerie se trouve au coin de la rue.
The bakery is at the corner of the street.
C’est la rue au coin de laquelle se trouve la boulangerie.
This is the street on the corner of which the bakery is located.
En dessous de
Le chat se cache en dessous de la table.
The cat is hiding underneath the table.
C’est la table en dessous de laquelle se cache le chat.
This is the table under which the cat is hiding.
Au-dessus de
J’ai accroché le cadre au-dessus de la télévision.
I hung the picture above the television.
C’est la télévision au-dessus de laquelle j’ai accroché le cadre.
This is the television above which I hung the picture.
En face de
Mon appartement se trouve en face de l’université.
My apartment is across from the university.
C’est l’université en face de laquelle se trouve mon appartement.
This is the university across from which my apartment is located.
Près de
On habite près de cette plage.
We live near this beach.
C’est la plage près de laquelle on habite.
This is the beach near which we live.
After working through these examples, students have several familiar expressions they can use to identify a prepositional phrase followed by de. When they see one of these expressions, they know to consider the appropriate form of duquel.
Move on to Verbal Phrases with DONT
Now I contrast those examples with verbal phrases followed by de.
A verbal phrase is an expression built around a verb. In these examples, the verb or verbal expression requires de.
With verbal phrases followed by DE, I teach students to use DONT.
Avoir besoin de — to need
Nous avons besoin de ces signatures.
We need these signatures.
Ce sont les signatures dont nous avons besoin.
These are the signatures we need.
The verbal expression is avoir besoin de. Because de belongs to this verbal expression, we use dont.
Parler de — to talk about
Tu me parlais de cette actrice hier.
You were talking to me about this actress yesterday.
C’est l’actrice dont tu me parlais.
This is the actress you were telling me about.
Here, the expression is parler de. We use dont, not a form of duquel.
Avoir envie de — to feel like
J’ai envie de manger cette glace.
I feel like eating this ice cream.
C’est la glace dont j’ai envie de manger.
This is the ice cream I feel like eating.
The expression is avoir envie de, so the relative pronoun is dont.
Jouer de — to play an instrument
Mon fils joue de la guitare.
My son plays the guitar.
La guitare est l’instrument dont mon fils joue.
The guitar is the instrument my son plays.
The expression jouer de is followed by de, so we use dont.
Give Students More Verbal Expressions to Recognize
I then introduce more verbal phrases that follow the same rule.
| Verbal phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| avoir peur de | to be afraid of |
| se méfier de | to beware of |
| se servir de | to use |
| se souvenir de | to remember |
| s’occuper de | to take care of |
| être responsable de | to be responsible for |
| se rendre compte de | to realize, to become aware of |
I use examples from each expression to reinforce the pattern.
Avoir peur de
J’ai peur des rats.
I am afraid of rats.
Les rats sont des animaux dont j’ai peur.
Rats are animals that I am afraid of.
Se méfier de
Il faut se méfier de ce type.
You have to be careful of this guy.
C’est un type dont il faut se méfier.
This is a guy you have to watch out for.
Se servir de
Je me sers souvent de ce téléphone.
I often use this phone.
C’est le téléphone dont je me sers souvent.
This is the phone I often use.
Se souvenir de
Je ne me souviens plus de ces gens.
I no longer remember these people.
Ce sont des gens dont je ne me souviens plus.
These are people I don’t remember.
S’occuper de
On va s’occuper de ces enfants.
We’re going to take care of these children.
Ce sont les enfants dont on va s’occuper.
These are the children we’re going to take care of.
Être responsable de
Je suis responsable de ces élèves.
I am responsible for these students.
Ce sont les élèves dont je suis responsable.
These are the students for whom I am responsible.
Se rendre compte de
Je me rends compte de la situation.
I realize the situation.
C’est une situation dont je me rends compte.
This is a situation I am aware of.
In each example, de belongs to the verbal expression. That’s why we use dont.
Put DONT and DUQUEL Side by Side
At this point, I return to the main distinction and compare the two types of expressions.
Prepositional phrase followed by DE → DUQUEL
Mme Pascal est assise à côté de son mari.
L’homme à côté duquel Mme Pascal est assise est son mari.
The expression is à côté de.
Verbal phrase followed by DE → DONT
Nous avons besoin de ces signatures.
Ce sont les signatures dont nous avons besoin.
The expression is avoir besoin de.
I want students to notice that both original sentences contain de, but the type of expression determines which relative pronoun we use.
French relative pronouns DONT vs DUQUEL lesson and exercises
Have Students Identify the Expression First
When students practice, I have them look at the original sentence before choosing the relative pronoun.
First, they identify the expression containing de.
- Is it a prepositional phrase, such as à côté de, en face de, or près de?
- Or is it a verbal phrase, such as avoir besoin de, parler de, or se souvenir de?
Then they choose the relative pronoun.
- Prepositional phrase: use the appropriate form of duquel.
- Verbal phrase: use dont.
For duquel, they also need to check the gender and number of the noun being replaced to choose the correct form.
This approach gives students a clear process to follow instead of asking them to memorize every example separately.
Ready to Practice French DONT vs DUQUEL?
If you’re teaching students to distinguish dont from the forms of duquel, I have some ready-to-use resources to help them recognize verbal phrases and prepositional phrases followed by de.
French relative pronouns DONT vs DUQUEL lesson and exercises
French Relative Pronoun DONT | Lesson, Practice & Speaking Activities
French Reading Comprehension Quiz – Dont and Duquel Relative Pronouns
French Relative Pronouns DONT ou DUQUEL – Google Forms Quiz or Printable
French Relative Pronoun DONT – French Grammar Activity
