Section 1
The relative pronoun — който and its forms
Agreement with gender and number.
The Bulgarian relative pronoun който (who/which/that) agrees in gender and number with the noun it refers to — its antecedent. It has four forms: masculine, feminine, neuter and plural. Within the clause it also changes for case (subject vs object).
| Subject (nominative) | Object (accusative) | With preposition (е.g. с, за, от) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masculine (M) | който | когото | с когото / за когото |
| Feminine (F) | която | която | с която / за която |
| Neuter (N) | което | което | с което / за което |
| Plural (Pl) | които | които | с които / за които |
💡 The accusative form когото
The masculine singular has a distinct object form: когото. This is used when the relative pronoun is the object of the verb in the clause: Мъжът, когото виждам. (The man whom I see.) vs Мъжът, който идва. (The man who is coming.) Feminine, neuter and plural have only one form (която, което, които) for both subject and object.
Section 2
Building relative clauses — examples by gender
One pattern for each gender/number.
| Antecedent | Relative pronoun | Full sentence | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| мъжът (M) | който | Мъжът, който живее до нас, е лекар. | The man who lives next to us is a doctor. |
| мъжът (M, object) | когото | Мъжът, когото видях, е лекар. | The man whom I saw is a doctor. |
| жената (F) | която | Жената, която говори, е моята учителка. | The woman who is speaking is my teacher. |
| детето (N) | което | Детето, което плаче, е гладно. | The child who is crying is hungry. |
| книгата (F) | която | Книгата, която чета, е много интересна. | The book that I am reading is very interesting. |
| хората (Pl) | които | Хората, които живеят тук, са много приятни. | The people who live here are very pleasant. |
| градът (M) | в който | Градът, в който живея, е Пловдив. | The city in which I live is Plovdiv. |
Section 3
Relative clauses with prepositions
When the relative pronoun follows a preposition.
When a preposition is needed, it comes before the relative pronoun — exactly as in formal English ("the city in which" not "the city which...in"). The preposition + pronoun stay together.
| Bulgarian | Romanised | English |
|---|---|---|
| Куфарът, в който сложих дрехите, изчезна. | Kufarat, v koyto slozhih drehite, izchezna. | The suitcase in which I put the clothes has disappeared. |
| Жената, с която работя, е много опитна. | Zhenata, s koyato rabotya, e mnogo opitna. | The woman with whom I work is very experienced. |
| Причините, поради които напусна, са неясни. | Prichinite, poradi koito napusna, sa neyasni. | The reasons for which he left are unclear. |
| Темата, за която говориш, е сложна. | Temata, za koyato govoriш, e slozhna. | The topic about which you are speaking is complex. |
| Хората, от които купих книгата, са приятели. | Horata, ot koito kupih knigata, sa priyateli. | The people from whom I bought the book are friends. |
Section 4
Чийто — whose
Expressing possession in a relative clause.
Чийто (whose) is used when the relative clause expresses possession. It agrees with the noun it modifies inside the clause (not the antecedent).
| Form | Use | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| чийто | before M noun | Мъжът, чийто син учи тук, е директор. | The man whose son studies here is the director. |
| чиято | before F noun | Жената, чиято дъщеря познавам, живее близо. | The woman whose daughter I know lives nearby. |
| чието | before N noun | Детето, чието куче изчезна, плаче. | The child whose dog disappeared is crying. |
| чиито | before Pl noun | Хората, чиито деца учат тук, са доволни. | The people whose children study here are satisfied. |
Section 5
Dialogue — using relative clauses naturally
— Спомняш ли си колегата, с когото работих в Пловдив?
— Онзи, чийто брат е архитект?
— Точно. Той се върна в компанията, от която напусна преди три години.
— Интересно. Отделът, в който работи сега, е ли новият?
— Да, новият отдел, който открихме миналата година.
— И как е? Доволен ли е?
— Изглежда да. Проектът, по който работи, е голям — за нова сграда в центъра.
— Сградата, за която чух по новините?
— Вероятно. Хората, с които работи, са едни от най-добрите в бранша.
— Звучи добре. Ще му кажа поздрави, ако го видя.
— Spomnyash li si kolegata, s kogoto rabotih v Plovdiv?
— Onzi, chiyto brat e arkhitekt?
— Tochno. Toy se varna v kompaniyata, ot koyato napusna predi tri godini.
— Interesno. Otdelat, v koyto raboti sega, li e noviyat?
— Da, noviyat otdel, koyto otkryhme minalata godina.
— I kak e? Dovolen li e?
— Izglezhda da. Proektat, po koyto raboti, e golyam — za nova sgrada v tsentara.
— Sgradatа, za koyato chuh po novinite?
— Veroyatno. Horata, s koito raboti, sa edni ot nay-dobrite v bransha.
— Zvuchi dobre. Shte mu kazha pozdravi, ako go vidya.
— Do you remember the colleague with whom I worked in Plovdiv?
— The one whose brother is an architect?
— Exactly. He returned to the company from which he left three years ago.
— Interesting. Is the department in which he works now the new one?
— Yes, the new department that we opened last year.
— And how is he? Is he happy?
— Seems so. The project on which he is working is a big one — for a new building in the centre.
— The building about which I heard on the news?
— Probably. The people with whom he works are among the best in the industry.
— Sounds good. I'll pass on regards if I see him.
Section 6
Writing task
✏️ Writing task — Day 46
- Write five sentences using relative clauses — one for each form: който, която, което, които, когото.
- Combine these pairs into one sentence with a relative clause: (a) "Познавам жена. Тя живее в Пловдив." (b) "Купих книга. Тя е много интересна."
- Translate: "The city in which I was born is no longer the same. The people with whom I grew up have all moved away."
- What is the difference between "который" (subject) and "когото" (object)? Give an example of each.
Show answers
1. E.g. Мъжът, който ме учи, е много добър. Книгата, която четох, беше интересна. Детето, което видях, плачеше. Хората, които дойдоха, са приятели. Мъжът, когото познавам, е лекар.
2. (a) Жената, която живее в Пловдив, я познавам. (b) Книгата, която купих, е много интересна.
3. Градът, в който съм роден/а, вече не е същият. Хората, с които израснах, всички са се изселили.
4. Който = subject (does the action): Мъжът, който идва. Когото = object (receives the action): Мъжът, когото виждам.
Day 46 Quiz
8 questions · score 6+ to mark day complete
Question 1 of 8
"The book that I am reading" — correct relative pronoun:
Question 2 of 8
"The man whom I saw" — correct form (M object):
Question 3 of 8
"The people who live here" — correct form:
Question 4 of 8
"The city in which I live" — correct:
Question 5 of 8
"The man whose son studies here" — чийто agrees with:
Question 6 of 8
"The woman whose daughter I know" — correct:
Question 7 of 8
"The topic about which you are speaking" — correct:
Question 8 of 8
Relative pronouns in Bulgarian agree with:
Day 46 Recap
Review before Day 47. Every point builds on the last.
| Topic | Key point | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Forms | M: който (subj) / когото (obj). F: която. N: което. Pl: които. | Only M has separate object form |
| Agreement | Relative pronoun agrees with the antecedent noun in gender and number. | книга → която · дете → което |
| With prepositions | Preposition comes BEFORE the relative pronoun: в който · с която · от които. | Same as formal English |
| Чийто | Whose — agrees with the noun INSIDE the clause: чийто/чиято/чието/чиито. | чийто (M) · чиято (F) · чието (N) |
| Subordinate clause | Relative clause goes after the noun it modifies, usually set off by commas. | |
| Building complexity | Stack multiple relative clauses to build detailed descriptions — key B1 skill. |