Subordinate Clauses: parce que, que, quand
अधीनस्थ उपवाक्य: parce que, que, quand
French links clauses together with connector words placed at the seam between them — and Hindi does the same structural trick with क्योंकि, कि, and जब, even though the word order inside each Hindi clause is SOV, not the SVO both French and English share.
Grammar Comparison
व्याकरण तुलना
parce que ≈ क्योंकि: because
Je reste à la maison parce qu'il pleut. (I'm staying home because it's raining.)
मैं घर पर हूँ क्योंकि बारिश हो रही है।
parce que introduces a reason and sits at the seam between the two clauses, just like क्योंकि does in Hindi. The one thing to watch: each clause internally keeps its own native word order — French/English keep SVO inside the parce que-clause (il pleut, 'it rains'), while Hindi keeps its own SOV inside the क्योंकि-clause (बारिश हो रही है, literally 'rain is happening') — so the connector word's position at the seam transfers directly from Hindi, even though the word order on either side of it doesn't.
que ≈ कि: introducing what someone thinks, says, or knows — never optional in either language
Je pense que tu as raison. (I think that you're right.)
मुझे लगता है कि तुम सही हो।
After verbs like penser, dire, savoir, croire, espérer, French uses que to introduce the reported content, and que can never be dropped, unlike English 'that' which is often optional ('I think you're right'). Hindi actually matches French here rather than English: कि is just as non-optional in careful Hindi as que is in French — मुझे लगता है कि तुम सही हो keeps कि just as reliably as the French keeps que. Lean on your Hindi habit of always including कि, rather than the English habit of sometimes dropping 'that', when deciding whether que is needed.
quand ≈ जब: when, for both questions and clauses
Quand tu arrives, appelle-moi. (When you arrive, call me.)
जब तुम पहुँचो, तो मुझे फ़ोन करना।
quand introduces a time clause the same way it introduces a question, just like Hindi जब. French uses the present tense in both halves of a quand-clause about the future (Quand tu arrives, appelle-moi — literally 'When you arrive, call me'). Hindi's जब-clause about the future often pairs with तो in the main clause (जब...पहुँचो, तो...) — an optional but very common correlative echo that French doesn't need — so while the core 'connector + two clauses' shape transfers directly from Hindi, don't be surprised if your Hindi instinct wants to add a तो that French simply omits.
Vocabulary
शब्दावली
- Hindi
- क्योंकिkyoñki
- English
- because
- Hindi
- किki
- English
- that (introducing a clause)
- Hindi
- जबjab
- English
- when
- Hindi
- चूँकिcūñki
- English
- since / as (giving a reason)
- Hindi
- चूँकिcūñki
- English
- as / since (used at the start of a sentence)
- Hindi
- जब तकjab tak
- English
- while
- Hindi
- मुझे लगता है किmujhe lagtā hai ki
- English
- I think that
- Hindi
- मुझे पता है किmujhe patā hai ki
- English
- I know that