Brottin

TOPIC · Sentence structure & conjunctions

Relative clauses with wo, was, wer

B1B2

After this lesson you can confidently form and understand relative clauses with “wo”, “was” and “wer” in typical contexts.

In this lesson you learn special relative clauses with wo, was and wer. They are different from the “normal” relative pronouns der, die, das and each has a specific use.

1Overview

FormTypical meaningTypical function
woplace / situationrefers to a (rather general) place or situation
wasindefinite “thing” / whole statementstands for “das, was …”
werperson(s), indefiniteoften means “the person who …”

2Relative clauses with wo

wo is not only a question word; it can be a relative pronoun. It refers to

  • place words: Ort, Platz, Stelle, Ecke, Gegend …
  • time / situation words: Stelle, Punkt, Moment, Phase, Situation (in a figurative way)

Use wo with a rather general place word. With a concrete place, in dem / an dem / an der is often better.

SentenceMeaning
Das Café, wo wir gestern waren, war sehr voll.The café where we were yesterday was very crowded.
Die Kreuzung, wo der Unfall passiert ist, ist sehr gefährlich.The junction where the accident happened is very dangerous.
Der Moment, wo ich ihn gesehen habe, war mir peinlich.The moment when I saw him was embarrassing for me.

In a wo-relative clause, word order is like in any Nebensatz: the finite verb goes to the end: „wo der Unfall passiert ist“.

3Relative clauses with was

was has two main uses:

  1. After indefinite words like alles, nichts, etwas, viel, wenig, einiges, das Einzige.
  2. After a whole sentence or statement.
SentenceMeaning
Alles, was du gesagt hast, stimmt.Everything (that) you said is correct.
Nichts, was er macht, ist zufällig.Nothing he does is accidental.
Das Einzige, was ich nicht verstehe, ist diese Regel.The only thing I don’t understand is this rule.
Er kam eine Stunde zu spät, was alle geärgert hat.He arrived an hour late, which annoyed everyone.

After alles, was … you cannot replace was with das: Alles, das du gesagt hast is not idiomatic.

4Relative clauses with wer

wer refers to one or more indefinite persons. A very common pattern is

Wer …, der …

Here wer is always nominative; other cases are expressed with dem, den etc. in the second clause.

SentenceMeaning
Wer fleißig ist, der besteht die Prüfung.Whoever is hard-working passes the exam.
Wer Hilfe braucht, soll sich melden.Anyone who needs help should get in touch.
Ich helfe gern, wer neu in der Stadt ist.I’m happy to help people who are new in the city. (more colloquial; formally better: „Ich helfe gern allen, die neu in der Stadt sind.“)

Typical fixed expressions:

ExpressionMeaning
Wer wagt, gewinnt.Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Wer sucht, der findet.Whoever looks will find.

Important: In sentences like Es gibt jemanden, wer mir helfen kann wer is wrong. You need a normal relative clause: Es gibt jemanden, der mir helfen kann.

5Summary

  • wo: place or situation, especially after general place nouns.
  • was: after alles, nichts, etwas, das Einzige and after whole sentences.
  • wer: indefinite person(s), often in proverbs and general rules.

Practice by forming sentences with alles, nichts, place words and general statements, and then add fitting relative clauses with wo, was and wer.