que

Statements with Que

Level 2

Que links a verb of thinking or saying to what is thought or said.

How It Works

Verbs of thinking, knowing and saying are followed by que and a clause. The clause has its own subject and verb.

OccitanEnglish
Pensi que Maria ven deman.I think Maria is coming tomorrow.
Sabèm que parlas occitan.We know that you speak Occitan.
Joan ditz qu'es aicí.Joan says that he is here.

English can leave out that, but Occitan always keeps que. Before a vowel it is written qu', as in qu'es. Read the two verbs separately to see who does what: Joan ditz and es aicí can have the same subject or two different ones. This que is not the relative que of lo libre que legissi (the book that I read), which is taught at Level 3.

Examples (4)

  1. Pensi que Maria ven deman.

    I think Maria is coming tomorrow.

    Que introduces the content of the thought.

  2. Sabèm que parlas occitan.

    We know that you speak Occitan.

    The two verbs have different subjects.

  3. Joan ditz qu'es aicí.

    Joan says that he is here.

    Que becomes qu' before es.

  4. Cresi que fa fred.

    I think it is cold.

    Cresi comes from créser.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out que, as English leaves out that.

    Pensi Maria ven deman.
    Pensi que Maria ven deman.

    Occitan needs que after a verb of thinking or saying.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

queLevel 2Statements with Que

Learn This First

Que after a verb of saying or knowing links two sentences, so the present of dire and saber come first.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

que