quel

Etymology

From Middle French quel, from Old French quel, from Latin quālis, quālem.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɛl/

• audio

  (file)

• Homophones: quelle, quelles, quels

Adjective

quel (feminine singular quelle, masculine plural quels, feminine plural quelles)

1. which

   Quel mec a volé mon pantalon ?

   Which guy stole my trousers?

2. (exclamative) what

   Quelle catastrophe !

   What a catastrophe !

Pronoun

quel m (feminine quelle, masculine plural quels, feminine plural quelles)

1. what

   Quel est son nom ?

   What is his name?

See also

• qui
• quoi

Further reading

• “quel” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Adjective

quel

1. Apocopic form of quello, used before a consonant that is not impure.

Alternative forms

• q̃l (abbreviation)

Etymology

From Old French quel, from Latin quālis, quālem.

Adjective

quel m (feminine singular quelle, masculine plural quelz, feminine plural quelles)

1. which
   • 1488, Jean Dupré, Lancelot du Lac, page 18:

     Si demanda l'ermite a messire Yvain de quel pays il estoit

     Then the hermit asked Sir Ywain which country he was from

Etymology

From Latin quālis, quālem.

Adjective

quel m (oblique and nominative feminine singular quele)

1. which

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *(ec)cu illu, from Latin eccum illum.

Determiner

quel m (feminine quella)

1. that