qui

See also: quí, quì, qûi, quỉ, qui-, and -qui

Translingual

Symbol

qui

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Quileute.

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Quileute terms

Aragonese

Etymology

From Latin quī.

Pronoun

qui

1. (interrogative) who? whom?

Asturian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈki/ [ˈki]

Pronoun

qui

1. (Cabrales) alternative form of que

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Latin quī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Balearic, Central, Valencia, Northwestern) [ˈki]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -i

Pronoun

qui

1. (interrogative) who, whom
2. whoever
   • 2019 August 17, Magí Camps, “Esther Tallada: “Cada traductor és fidel a la seva manera””, in La Vanguardia‎^[1]:

     Qui tradueix hi aporta coses, pren decisions en funció del que li suscita l’original, segons el que creu que és més important destacar.

     Whoever translates contributes things to it; they make decisions depending on what the original arouses in them, according to what they believe is most important to emphasize.

Related terms

• què
• que
• quin

Further reading

• “qui”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “qui”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “qui” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “qui”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

French

Etymology 1

Inherited from Middle French qui, from Old French qui, from Latin quī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ki/

  • Audio:

    (file)

  • Audio (Switzerland (Valais)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Toulouse)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Vosges)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Grenoble)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Vosges)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Vosges)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Hérault)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Saint-Étienne)):

    (file)

  • Audio (France (Massy)):

    (file)

• (Louisiana) IPA^(key): /ki/, /ti/

Pronoun

qui m or f

1. (interrogative) who, whom

   Tu as vu qui ?

   Whom have you seen?

   Je ne sais pas qui vous êtes.

   I don't know who you are.

2. (nominative, relative) who, which, that

   La personne qui parle connait bien son sujet.

   The person who speaks knows his/her subject well.

   Cette voiture bleue qui passe me plait beaucoup.

   This blue car which is passing I like a lot.

   J’aime les chiens qui sont calmes.

   I like dogs that are quiet.

3. (disjunctive, relative) whom (after a preposition)

   Un homme à qui j’ai parlé.

   A man to whom I spoke/have spoken.

4. (slightly formal, fused relative) he who, who(m)ever

   Si lugubre que fût l’appartement, c’était un paradis pour qui revenait du lycée.

   Gloomy as the apartment was, it was still a paradise for those who came back from school.

   Rira bien qui rira le dernier.

   Who laughs last laughs well.

5. (Louisiana, regional) what

   Qui tu veux manger?

   What do you want to eat?

Usage notes

• Unlike que, qui does not elide before a vowel sound, except sparingly in speech and very rarely in writing (e.g., in the proper noun Qu'Appelle). In Louisiana, however, both que and qui are commonly elided to qu' before vowel sounds.
• After a preposition, qui can only refer to people; things (including animals, objects, ideas, etc.) require the pronoun lequel. After the prepositions entre (“between”) and parmi (“among”), lesquels/lesquelles (the plural forms of lequel, the singulars being — logically — much less common) must be used whether referring to a person or a thing.

Alternative forms

• ti (Louisiana)

Derived terms

• à qui le dis-tu
• à qui le dites-vous
• à qui mieux mieux
• ce qui
• n'importe qui
• qu'est-ce qui
• qui de droit
• qui plus est
• qui que ce puisse être
• qui que ce pût être
• qui que ce soit
• qui sait
• sauve qui peut

Descendants

• Haitian Creole: ki
• Louisiana Creole: ki

See also

• que (accusative relative pronoun)
• lequel (disjunctive)
• quoi (disjunctive, for unspecified things)

Etymology 2

Perhaps related to si (“if”).

Pronunciation

• (Louisiana) IPA^(key): /ki/

Conjunction

qui

1. (Louisiana) if
   • 2010, Valdman, et al., Dictionary of Louisiana French, page 508:

     Qui elle en a, ça va faire.

     If she has any, that will do.

Etymology 3

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

• (Louisiana) IPA^(key): /ki/

Interjection

qui

1. Used to indicate the cry of a bird.
   • 2010, Valdman, et al., Dictionary of Louisiana French, page 509:

     Quand-ce que l’hiver est après arriver, tu les attends passer. Avant que le froid arrive tu les attends, qui! qui! qui!

     When the winter is about to come, you hear them flying over. Before the cold comes you hear them, kee! kee! kee!

Further reading

• “qui”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012
• Dictionary of Louisiana French: As Spoken in Cajun, Creole, and American Indian Communities (2009; →ISBN; →ISBN)

Ido

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kwi/

Pronoun

qui

1. plural of qua
2. (relative pronoun) which (plural)

   Esis tre jentila homi qui helpis ni. ― It was very nice men who helped us.

3. (interrogative pronoun) who (plural)

   Qui esas ita kerli? ― Who are these guys? (direct question)

   Me ne konocas qui iti esas. ― I don't know who these are. (indirect question)

Pronoun

qui

1. plural of quo
2. (relative pronoun) which (plural)

   Esis tre bona kulteli qui me tranchis per. ― They were really good knives with which I cut.

3. (interrogative pronoun) what (plural)

   Qui eventis? ― What (thing) happened? (indicating that several things happened) (direct question)

   Ka tu povas helpar me decidar qui metar? ― Can you help me to decide what to wear? (indicating that several things are to be worn) (indirect question)

Related terms

• qua (“who (person)”)
• quo (“what (thing)”)
• qui (“who (plural)”)
• pro quo (“why”)

See also

• ube (“where”)
• kande (“when”)
• quala (“what kind of”)
  • quale (“how”)
• quanta (“how much”)
  • quanto (“quantity”)

Interlingua

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ki/

Pronoun

qui

1. (interrogative) who
2. (relative) who; whom

Usage notes

• As a relative, qui is used in the nominative and after prepositions.

  un contabile qui sape disfacer se del evidentia

  an accountant who knows how to get rid of evidence

  un contabile super qui nos pote contar

  an accountant on whom we can count

• In the oblique, que is used instead.

  un contabile que le policia non perseque

  an accountant whom the police are not pursuing

Italian

Alternative forms

• quì (misspelling or obsolete)

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *eccum hīc (with apocope), from Latin eccum + hīc.

The original geminated -cc-, though lost in the standard language, is still found in most regional Italian varieties.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkwi/^*

  • Audio:

    (file)

• (regional) IPA^(key): ^*/ˈkwi/^*
• Rhymes: -i

Adverb

qui

1. here

   Synonym: qua

Usage notes

• While qui and qua are mostly interchangeable, qui has a more punctual meaning whereas qua is more vague, similar to the pair lì and là.

See also

• lì, là
• ci

	this place	that place (close to listener)	that place (far from listener)	what place
at/to	qui, qua, di qua, quassù, quaggiù	costì, costà, costassù, costaggiù	lì, là, di là, lassù, laggiù	dove
from	da qui, quindi, quinci	da costì, indi	da lì, indi	da dove, donde, onde

Further reading

• qui in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)
• qui in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Latin

See also

Latin correlatives ^(edit)

type	demonstrative			anaphoric	identity	interrogative or basic relative	indefinite							alternative
	proximal	medial	distal				relative	irrelative	free choice	universal	positive polarity	negative polarity	negative
basic	hic	iste istic	ille illic	is	ᵉipse īdem	quis quī	quīcumque quisquis	quīdam aliquis, quis aliquī, quī nesciō quis	quīvis quīlibet	quisque	quispiam	quisquam hīlum ūllus	nēmō̆ nihil nūllus	alius
ᵇcomparative	huiusmodī ᵉhuiuscemodī	istī̆usmodī ᵉistī̆uscemodī	illī̆usmodī ᵉillī̆uscemodī	eiusmodī	eiusdemmodī	cuiusmodī	cuiusmodīcumque	alicuiusmodī cuiusdammodī	cuiusvīsmodī	cuiusquemodī			°nūllī̆usmodī	alterī̆usmodī alīusmodī
dual						uter	utercumque	alteruter	utervīs uterlibet	uterque			neuter	alter
place	hīc	istīc	illīc	ibī̆	ibī̆dem	ubī̆	ubī̆cumque °ubiubī̆	alicubī̆	ubivīs ubilibet	ubīque	uspiam	usquam °ubīquam	nusquam nūllibī	alibī aliās
source	hinc	istinc °istim	illinc °illim	inde ªim	indidem	unde °cum	undecumque °undeunde	alicunde	°undelibet	undique		°undiquam	°nūllunde	aliunde
destination	hūc hōc °hōrsum	istūc istō, istōc °istōrsum	illūc illō, illōc °illōrsum	eō	eōdem	quō quōrsum	quōcumque quōquō °quōrsumcumque	aliquō °aliquōvorsum	quōvīs quōlibet	quōque	quōpiam uspiam	usquam quōquam ªūllō	nusquam ªnihilō ªnūllō °nūllōrsum	aliō aliōrsum
means, way, path, place	hāc	ªistā istāc	ªillā illāc	eā	eādem	quā quārē	quācumque quāquā	aliquā	quāvīs quālibet	°quāque	°quāpiam	°quāquam ªūllā	nēquāquam ªnūllā ᵉhaudquāquam	aliā
ᵇdistance	hāctenus	°istātenus °istāctenus	°illātenus °illāctenus	eātenus		quātenus	°quātenuscumque °quāquātenus	aliquātenus quādantenus	°quātenusvīs °quātenuslibet			ūllātenus	nūllātenus	aliātenus
ᵇreason	°hācpropter °hōccircā	°istāpropter	°illāpropter	eāpropter proptereā eōcircā idcircō ideō		ᶜcūr quāpropter quōcircā quārē †quia								°aliāpropter
ᵇmanner	hōc modō	istō modō	illō modō	ita ᵉsīc eō modō	item itidem eādem operā eōdem modō	ut prout °quem quō modō quōmodo ᵉquemadmodum	utcumque °utut °proutcumque quōmodocumque °ᵉquemadmodumcumque	quōdam modō aliquō modō	quōmodolibet	utīque quōque modō	quōpiam modō	°utiquam ūllō modō	nihil neutiquam °neutī̆que nūllō modō	aliter alterō/aliō modō
instrument, matter, knowledge						quī ᵉquīn °quīcum	quīcumque	quī °aliquī	°quīlibet	°quīque	°quia	°quīquam	nihilō nēquīquam	aliōquī ᵉaliōquīn
time	†num nunc		ōlim	tum tunc	simul	quandō̆ ‡cum	quandōcumque quandōque cumque °quandōnē °ᵉquandōquandō °cumcumque	quondam aliquandō̆	°quandōlibet	quandōque	†quoniam	umquam	numquam	aliās
quantity				tam	†tamen †tandem	quam	quamcumque †quamquam	aliquam	quamvīs quamlibet	quamque
size				tantus	tantusdem	quantus	quantuscumque quantusquantus	aliquantus	quantusvīs quantuslibet	quantusque
quality				tālis		quālis	quāliscumque quālisquālis	aliquālis	quālislibet	quālisque
number				tot	totidem	quot	quotquot quotcumque	aliquot	quotlibet
order/fractional				totus		quotus	°quotuscumque	°aliquotus	°quotuslibet	°quotusque °quotusquisque
repetition				totiēns		quotiēns	quotiēnscumque	aliquotiēns	quotiēnslibet	quotiēnsque °quotiēnsquisque			°nūllotiēns
† Turned conjunction with original meaning somewhat changed ° Rare ‡ Only used as a conjunction, not as an interrogative. ª Used almost exclusively to form locutions or compounds. ᵇ All locutions ending in modī, modō, propter, circā or tenus can be univerbalized and vice versa, except de, secus and if another suffix, such as -cumque, -que or -libet, follows them, quemadmodum can also come as a locution in "quem ad modum", quārē can even also come separately especially if accompanied by a preposition, such as dē. ᶜ Used purely and simply as an interrogative in direct questions (then irrelative), its relative meaning is somewhat lost, if it ever had one. ᵉemphatic

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈkʷiː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈkʷiː]

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *kʷ-

Proto-Indo-European *kʷos

Proto-Italic *kʷoi

Latin quei

Latin qui

From earlier quei, from Proto-Italic *kʷoi, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷís, *kʷos.

Alternative forms

• quei (standard Republican spelling, later especially to distinguish the plural)
• quoi, qoi (Old Latin)

Pronoun

quī (feminine quae, neuter quod); relative pronoun

1. (relative) who, that, which, what
   • 239 BCE – 169 BCE, Ennius, Annales 1 (fragment in Varro, De Lingua Latina 7.20):

     Mūsae, quae pedibus magnum pulsātis Olympum

     O Muses, who with your feet press great Olympus...

   • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de bello Gallico 1.1:

     Gallia est omnis dīvīsa in partēs trēs, quārum, ūnam incolunt Belgae, aliam Aquītānī, tertiam quī ipsōrum linguā Celtae, nostrā Gallī appellantur.

     Gaul as a whole is divided into three parts, [and] of those [parts], one [part] the Belgians inhabit, another [part] the Aquitani, a third [part are people] who in their own language [are] Celts, [but] in ours they are called Gauls.
     (Genitive feminine plural relative pronoun referring back to partēs; expresses the partitive genitive.)

   • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de bello Gallico 7.11:

     Ea quī cōnficeret, C. Trebōnium lēgātum relinquit.

     To complete these arrangements, he leaves Gaius Trebonius in command.

     (literally, “Who would take care of these things, he leaves Gaius Trebonius as legate.”)

   • c. 177 CE, Aulus Gellius, Noctes Atticae 1.18.5:

     Nam quod ā Graecīs nunc κλέπτης dīcitur, antīquiōre Graecā linguā φὼρ dictum est. Hinc per adfīnitātem litterārum, quī φὼρ Graecē, est Latīnē 'fūr'.

     For, what is now said a κλέπτης by the Greeks, in older Greek language φώρ was said. Hence, by affinity of the letters, he who [is] a φώρ in Greek is in Latin a fūr.

   • c. 347 CE – 420 CE, Hieronymus, Vulgate Tobit.2.18:

     Quoniam fīliī sānctōrum sumus, et vītam illam expectāmus, quam Deus datūrus est hīs quī fidem suam numquam mūtant ab eō.

     For we are the children of saints, and look for that life which God will give to those that never change their faith from him.

   • c. 524 CE, Boethius, De philosophiae consolatione 1.1:

     Mors hominum felix, quae se nec dulcibus annis
     Inserit et maestis saepe uocata uenit.

     Fortunate is that human death that doesn't step in during one's sweet years, and comes to the sorrowful after being often called!

Usage notes

• See quis for the interrogative pronoun ("who?") or indefinite pronoun ("any(one)"), which share most but not all forms with the relative pronoun.

Declension

Relative pronoun.

	singular				plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	quī quei1	quae quai1	quod		quī quei1	quae
genitive	cuius quoius1				quōrum	quārum	quōrum
dative	cui quoi1 quoī / quoei1 quoiī / quoiei1				quibus quīs queis1
accusative	quem	quam	quod		quōs	quās	quae
ablative	quō quī2	quā quī2	quō quī2		quibus quīs queis1
vocative	—				—

¹Republican Latin.
²Quī is occasionally used as an ablative singular, whence quīcum (“with whom”); it was originally preferred in instrumental meanings.

Determiner

quī or quei or quis (feminine quae or quai or qua, neuter quod); relative/interrogative determiner

1. (interrogative, usually clause-initial) what, what kind of, what sort of, which
   • 44 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Philippicae 10.4.7:

     Qui est iste tuus sensus, quae cogitatio, Brutos ut non probes, Antonios probes...?

     • 2010 translation by D. R. Shackleton Bailey, revised by John T. Ramsey, Gesine Manuwal

       By what sentiment, what process of thought do you disapprove of the Bruti and approve of the Antonii...?

   • 55 BCE, Cicero, De oratore 2.34:

     Qui enim cantus moderata oratione dulcior inveniri potest? Quod carmen artificiosa verborum conclusione aptius? Qui actor imitanda quam orator suscipienda veritate iucundior?

     What music can be found more sweet than the pronunciation of a well-ordered oration? What poem more agreeable than the skilful structure of prose? What actor has ever given greater pleasure in imitating, than an orator gives in supporting, truth?

   • 412 CE – 426 CE, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis, De civitate Dei 4.8:

     Deinde quaeramus, si placet, ex tanta deorum turba quam Romani colebant quem potissimum vel quos deos credant illud imperium dilatasse atque servasse.

     • 1963 translation by William M. Green

       Next let us inquire, if you like, which god or which gods, out of the mighty throng worshipped by the Romans, they believe did most to extend and preserve their empire.

2. (indefinite, never clause-initial) any, any sort of
   1. (usually after sī, nisi, num, or nē)
      • c. 200 BCE, Plautus, Menaechmi 340–341:

        Sī quae peregrīna nāvis in portum advenit, rogitant cuiātis sit

        If any foreign ship comes into the port, they ask where it comes from

      • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de bello Gallico 1.31:

        Ariovistum [...] obsidēs nōbilissimī cuiusque līberōs poscere, et in eōs omnia exempla cruciatūsque ēdere, sī qua rēs nōn ad nūtum aut ad voluntātem eius facta sit.

        Ariovistus ... demanded the children of all the high nobles as hostages, and afflict them with every kind of cruelty, if anything wasn't done with his approval or for his pleasure.

      • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de bello Gallico 7.11:

        ne quem post se hostem relinqueret

        lest he should leave any enemy behind him

      • c. 52 BCE, Julius Caesar, Commentarii de bello Gallico 7.28:

        Ut si qua ex parte

        That if from any side

      • 29 BCE – 19 BCE, Vergilius, Aeneis 1.181–182:

        [...] Anthea sī quem
        iactātum ventō videat Phrygiāsque birēmīs [...]

        if perhaps he could see anything of Antheus, storm-tossed by wind, and the double-banked Phrygian [galleys])

      • 27 BCE – 25 BCE, Titus Livius, Ab urbe condita 26.1:

        […] dum ne quem militem legeret ex eo numero quibus senatus missionem reditumque in patriam negasset ante belli finem.

        […] provided he did not choose any soldier from those to whom the Senate had refused discharge and a return home before the end of the war

   2. (less often, after another word)
      • c. 200 BCE, Plautus, Mostellaria 655 (Although Ussing 1875 interprets "malum quod" in Amphitruo 563 and like lines as equivalent to malum aliquod (“some/any evil”), others disagree and interpret "malum" in this context as an interjection):

        Malum quod isti di deaeque omnes duint,
        ita mea consilia perturbat paenissime.

        (please add an English translation of this quotation)

      • c. 191 BCE, Plautus, Pseudolus 1130:

        Malum quod tibī dī dabunt, sīc scelestu's.

        (please add an English translation of this quotation)

      • c. 190 BCE – 185 BCE, Plautus, Amphitruo 563:

        Malum quod tibī dī dabunt, atque ego hodiē
        dabō.

        (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Usage notes

• See quis.

Declension

Relative/interrogative determiner.

	singular				plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	quī quei1 quis1	quae quai1 qua2	quod		quī quei1	quae	quae qua2
genitive	cuius quoius1				quōrum	quārum	quōrum
dative	cui quoi1 quoī / quoei1 quoiī / quoiei1				quibus quīs queis1
accusative	quem	quam	quod		quōs	quās	quae qua2
ablative	quō quī3	quā quī3	quō quī3		quibus quīs queis1
vocative	—				—

¹Republican Latin.
²Qua (with short ă) occurs only as an indefinite pronoun or determiner, placed immediately after sī, nē, or num. The combinations sīqua, nēqua, and numqua are sometimes written without spacing (as also are the masculines sīquis, nēquis, and numquis). Compare aliquis, aliqua, aliquid. Quae can also be used instead of quă, and quă is never used as an interrogative pronoun/determiner, relative pronoun/determiner, or feminine nominative plural.
³Quī is occasionally used as an ablative singular, whence quīcum (“with whom”); it was originally preferred in instrumental meanings.

Derived terms

• ad quem
• aliōquī
• aliquī
• cuius
• omnis quī
• quā
• quīcum
• quīcumque
• quīdam
• quīlibet
• quīvīs
• quō
• quod erat demonstrandum

Descendants

• Balkano-Romance:
  • Aromanian: tsini, cui
  • Romanian: cine, cui
• Italo-Romance:
  • Italian: chi
  • Sicilian: cui, cu' (apocoped)
• Gallo-Romance:
  • Catalan: qui
  • French: qui, que
  • Picard: qui
• Ibero-Romance:
  • Aragonese: qui
  • Old Galician-Portuguese: quen
    • Galician: quen
    • Portuguese: quem
  • Old Spanish: qui, quien
    • Spanish: quien
• Borrowings:
  • → Albanian: që (according to Orel)
  • → Interlingua: qui

References

• “qui¹”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• Allen, Joseph Henry; Greenough, James B. (1903), Allen and Greenough's New Latin grammar for schools and colleges: founded on comparative grammar, Boston: Ginn and Company, § 147 (relative pronoun)
• Allen, Joseph Henry; Greenough, James B. (1903), Allen and Greenough's New Latin grammar for schools and colleges: founded on comparative grammar, Boston: Ginn and Company, § 149 (indefinite adjective)

Etymology 2

Old instrumental case of quis, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷíh₁ (“how?”). Cognate with English why.

Adverb

quī (not comparable)

1. (interrogative) In what way? how? whereby? by what means? why?

   Synonyms: ut, quōmodō, quā

2. (relative) wherewith, whereby, wherefrom, how; that, in order that
3. (indefinite, with hercle, edepol, at, quippe, ut) somehow, surely
4. (Plautine, rare):

   Synonym: quantī

   1. (interrogative) at what price, (for) how much, how dear?
      • c. 197 BCE, Plautus, Persa 590:

        Indica, minimo daturus qui sis, qui duci queat.

        Tell me the cheapest at which you'll part from her, for how much I can take her with me.

   2. (relative) at which price, for how much, as dear as
      • c. 200 BCE, Plautus, Menaechmi 3.3.24–25:

        Haec me curaturum dicito—
        ut quantum possint quique liceant veneant.

        I'll tell her how I intend to discharge this matter, that they can be sold the faster and as dear as they be valued.

Derived terms

• aliōquī / aliōquīn
• atquī
• quīn

References

• “qui²”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “qui”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “qui”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎^[2], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • (ambiguous) the visible world: haec omnia, quae videmus
    
  • (ambiguous) the vegetable kingdom: ea, quae terra gignit
    
  • (ambiguous) the vegetable kingdom: ea, quae e terra gignuntur
    
  • (ambiguous) the vegetable kingdom: ea, quae a terra stirpibus continentur
    
  • (ambiguous) the vegetable kingdom: ea quorum stirpes terra continentur (N. D. 2. 10. 26)
    
  • (ambiguous) the atmosphere: aer qui est terrae proximus
    
  • (ambiguous) eastern, western Germany: Germania quae or Germaniae ea pars quae, ad orientem, occidentem vergit
    
  • (ambiguous) where are you going: quo tendis?
    
  • (ambiguous) I cannot wait till..: nihil mihi longius est or videtur quam dum or quam ut
    
  • (ambiguous) nothing is more tiresome to me than..: nihil mihi longius est quam (c. Inf.)
    
  • (ambiguous) since the time that, since (at the beginning of a sentence): ex quo tempore or simply ex quo
    
  • (ambiguous) the middle ages: media quae vocatur aetas
    
  • (ambiguous) Pericles, the greatest man of his day: Pericles, quo nemo tum fuit clarior
    
  • (ambiguous) Pericles, the greatest man of his day: Pericles, vir omnium, qui tum fuerunt, clarissimus
    
  • (ambiguous) it is more than twenty years ago: amplius sunt (quam) viginti anni or viginti annis
    
  • (ambiguous) on the day after, which was September 5th: postridie qui fuit dies Non. Sept. (Nonarum Septembrium) (Att. 4. 1. 5)
    
  • (ambiguous) to-day the 5th of September; tomorrow September the 5th: hodie qui est dies Non. Sept.; cras qui dies futurus est Non. Sept.
    
  • (ambiguous) to fail to see what lies before one: quod ante pedes est or positum est, non videre
    
  • (ambiguous) the world of sense, the visible world: res quas oculis cernimus
    
  • (ambiguous) those to whom we owe our being: ei, propter quos hanc lucem aspeximus
    
  • (ambiguous) the rest of one's life: quod reliquum est vitae
    
  • (ambiguous) how old are you: qua aetate es?
    
  • (ambiguous) our contemporaries; men of our time: homines qui nunc sunt (opp. qui tunc fuerunt)
    
  • (ambiguous) how are you getting on: quo loco res tuae sunt?
    
  • (ambiguous) under such circumstances: quae cum ita sint
    
  • (ambiguous) from this point of view; similarly: quo in genere
    
  • (ambiguous) by some chance or other: nescio quo casu (with Indic.)
    
  • (ambiguous) Fortune's favourite: is, quem fortuna complexa est
    
  • (ambiguous) it is most fortunate that..: peropportune accidit, quod
    
  • (ambiguous) you were right in...; you did right to..: recte, bene fecisti quod...
    
  • (ambiguous) Plato's ideal republic: illa civitas, quam Plato finxit
    
  • (ambiguous) this is more plausible than true: haec speciosiora quam veriora sunt
    
  • (ambiguous) a thing which is rather (very) dubious: quod aliquam (magnam) dubitationem habet (Leg. Agr. 1. 4. 11)
    
  • (ambiguous) as far as I know: quod sciam
    
  • (ambiguous) he attained his object: id quod voluit consecutus est
    
  • (ambiguous) he attained his object: ad id quod voluit pervenit
    
  • (ambiguous) abstruse studies: studia, quae in reconditis artibus versantur (De Or. 1. 2. 8)
    
  • (ambiguous) the usual subjects taught to boys: doctrinae, quibus aetas puerilis impertiri solet (Nep. Att. 1. 2)
    
  • (ambiguous) the usual subjects taught to boys: artes, quibus aetas puerilis ad humanitatem informari solet
    
  • (ambiguous) men of that profession: qui ista profitentur
    
  • (ambiguous) philosophical subjects: quae in philosophia tractantur
    
  • (ambiguous) disciples of Plato, Platonists: qui sunt a Platone or a Platonis disciplina; qui profecti sunt a Platone; Platonici
    
  • (ambiguous) moral science; ethics: philosophia, quae est de vita et moribus (Acad. 1. 5. 19)
    
  • (ambiguous) moral science; ethics: philosophia, in qua de bonis rebus et malis, deque hominum vita et moribus disputatur
    
  • (ambiguous) theoretical, speculative philosophy: philosophia, quae in rerum contemplatione versatur, or quae artis praeceptis continetur
    
  • (ambiguous) practical philosophy: philosophia, quae in actione versatur
    
  • (ambiguous) to determine the nature and constitution of the subject under discussion: constituere, quid et quale sit, de quo disputetur
    
  • (ambiguous) to bring forward a proof of the immortality of the soul: argumentum afferre, quo animos immortales esse demonstratur
    
  • (ambiguous) a proof of this is that..: argumento huic rei est, quod
    
  • (ambiguous) it follows from this that..: sequitur (not ex quo seq.) ut
    
  • (ambiguous) it follows from this that..: ex quo, unde, hinc efficitur ut
    
  • (ambiguous) the point at issue: id, de quo agitur or id quod cadit in controversiam
    
  • (ambiguous) the connection of thought: ratio, qua sententiae inter se excipiunt.
    
  • (ambiguous) I have exhausted all my material: copiam quam potui persecutus sum
    
  • (ambiguous) a digression, episode: quod ornandi causa additum est
    
  • (ambiguous) I have nothing to write about: non habeo, non est quod scribam
    
  • (ambiguous) a theme, subject proposed for discussion: id quod (mihi) propositum est
    
  • (ambiguous) a theme, subject proposed for discussion: id quod quaerimus (quaeritur)
    
  • (ambiguous) a theme, subject proposed for discussion: institutum or id quod institui
    
  • (ambiguous) to set some one a theme for discussion: ponere alicui, de quo disputet
    
  • (ambiguous) to let those present fix any subject they like for discussion: ponere iubere, qua de re quis audire velit (Fin. 2. 1. 1)
    
  • (ambiguous) the question at issue: res, de qua nunc quaerimus, quaeritur
    
  • (ambiguous) what is the meaning, the original sense of this word: quae est vis huius verbi?
    
  • (ambiguous) what is the meaning, the original sense of this word: quae notio or sententia subiecta est huic voci?
    
  • (ambiguous) what do we understand by 'a wise man': quem intellegimus sapientem?
    
  • (ambiguous) what do we mean by 'virtue': quae intellegitur virtus
    
  • (ambiguous) as the proverb says: ut or quod or quomodo aiunt, ut or quemadmodum dicitur
    
  • (ambiguous) Cicero says in his 'Laelius.: Cicero dicit in Laelio (suo) or in eo (not suo) libro, qui inscribitur Laelius
    
  • (ambiguous) a book which is attributed to some one: liber qui fertur alicuius
    
  • (ambiguous) the book is attributed to an unknown writer: liber refertur ad nescio quem auctorem
    
  • (ambiguous) the reader: legentes, ii qui legunt
    
  • (ambiguous) a letter to Atticus: epistula ad Atticum data, scripta, missa or quae ad A. scripta est
    
  • (ambiguous) I am pained, vexed, sorry: aegre, graviter, moleste fero aliquid (or with Acc. c. Inf. or quod)
    
  • (ambiguous) there is nothing I am more interested in than..: nihil antiquius or prius habeo quam ut (nihil mihi antiquius or potius est, quam ut)
    
  • (ambiguous) an atheist: qui deum esse negat
    
  • (ambiguous) and may God grant success: quod deus bene vertat!
    
  • (ambiguous) and may heaven avert the omen! heaven preserve us from this: quod di immortales omen avertant! (Phil. 44. 11)
    
  • (ambiguous) God forbid: quod abominor! (procul absit!)
    
  • (ambiguous) may heaven's blessing rest on it: quod bonum, faustum, felix, fortunatumque sit! (Div. 1. 45. 102)
    
  • (ambiguous) movable, personal property: res, quae moveri possunt; res moventes (Liv. 5. 25. 6)
    
  • (ambiguous) the necessaries of life: quae ad victum pertinent
    
  • (ambiguous) a livelihood: quae suppeditant ad victum (Off. 1. 4. 12)
    
  • (ambiguous) I have no means, no livelihood: non habeo, qui (unde) vivam
    
  • (ambiguous) to talk of a subject which was then the common topic of conversation: in eum sermonem incidere, qui tum fere multis erat in ore
    
  • (ambiguous) imports and exports: res, quae importantur et exportantur
    
  • (ambiguous) the debtor: debitor, or is qui debet
    
  • (ambiguous) the perfume exhaled by flowers: odores, qui efflantur e floribus
    
  • (ambiguous) domestic animals: animalia quae nobiscum degunt (Plin. 8. 40)
    
  • (ambiguous) a legislator: qui leges scribit (not legum lator)
    
  • (ambiguous) aristocracy (as a form of government): civitas, quae optimatium arbitrio regitur
    
  • (ambiguous) the aristocracy (as a party in politics): boni cives, optimi, optimates, also simply boni (opp. improbi); illi, qui optimatium causam agunt
    
  • (ambiguous) the aristocracy (as a social class): nobiles; nobilitas; qui nobilitate generis excellunt
    
  • (ambiguous) the public income from the mines: pecunia publica, quae ex metallis redit
    
  • (ambiguous) men of military age: qui arma ferre possunt or iuventus
    
  • (ambiguous) men exempt from service owing to age: qui per aetatem arma ferre non possunt or aetate ad bellum inutiles
    
  • (ambiguous) veterans; experienced troops: qui magnum in castris usum habent
    
  • (ambiguous) by the longest possible forced marches: quam maximis itineribus (potest)
    
  • (ambiguous) the cohort on guard-duty: cohors, quae in statione est
    
  • (ambiguous) subjects: qui imperio subiecti sunt
    
  • (ambiguous) to sum up..: ut eorum, quae dixi, summam faciam
    
  • (ambiguous) I will give you my true opinion: dicam quod sentio
    
  • (ambiguous) this I have to say: haec habeo dicere or habeo quae dicam
    
  • (ambiguous) without wishing to boast, yet..: quod vere praedicare possum
    
  • (ambiguous) which I can say without offence, arrogance: quod non arroganter dixerim
    
  • (ambiguous) to except the fact that..: praeterquam quod or nisi quod
    
  • (ambiguous) from this it appears, is apparent: ex quo intellegitur or intellegi potest, debet
    
  • (ambiguous) from this it appears, is apparent: ex quo perspicuum est
    
  • (ambiguous) the main point: id quod maximum, gravissimum est
    
  • (ambiguous) the main point: quod caput est
    
  • (ambiguous) what is more important: quod maius est
    

Etymology 3

Inflection of quis.

Pronoun

quī m pl

1. nominative masculine plural of quis

Macanese

Alternative forms

• (as a determiner) quê

Etymology

From a merger of Portuguese que, quer, and quão.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ki/

Conjunction

qui

1. that

   Iou sintí qui vôs pôde vai

   I think that you can go

2. (by extension) until, to the point of

   comê quí ravirâ ― to stuff oneself (literally, “to eat to the point of turning (around)”)

   rí qui istripâ ― to laugh one's head off (literally, “to laugh to the point of disembowelment”)

3. than

   pió qui ― worse than

Determiner

qui

1. (relative) what, which

   Synonym: qualunga

   qui cuza? ― what is that? (literally, “which thing?”)

   qui laia? ― how? (literally, “(in) what way?”)

   qui-foi? ― why? (literally, “what was?”)

2. what a (preceding nouns) (indicates surprise, delight, or other strong feelings)

   Qui vegónha! ― What a shame!

   Qui boniteza! ― How beautiful! (literally, “What beauty!”)

Derived terms

• qui sabe (“who knows!, how should I know!”)
• qui-di (“where”)

Adverb

qui

1. how, so (preceding adjectives) (indicates surprise, delight, or other strong feelings)

   Qui vida-fêde! ― How annoying!

   Qui afogoso! ― So rushed!

   Olá Ano-Bom ta vêm, qui azinha passá tamêm.

   I saw in the New Year, how quickly that has passed as well.

2. placed between two of the same adjective to amplify the degree of said adjective

   fáci qui fáci ― very easy

   mucho qui mucho ― already very withered

Pronoun

qui

1. (interrogative) what thing

   Qui nova? ― What's new?

Conjunction

qui … qui

1. either … or

   qui aqui, qui alí ― either here or there

Usage notes

• qui is often used to connect a noun with an adjective even without the sense of "that" or "so", for example:

  Árvre qui encorpado ― a sturdy tree (literally, “tree so sturdy / tree that sturdy”)

References

• https://www.macaneselibrary.org/pub/english/uipatua.htm

Middle French

Alternative forms

• q̓ (abbreviation)

Etymology

From Old French qui, from Latin quī.

Pronoun

qui

1. who
2. which (when referring to a non-human)

Descendants

• French: qui

Old French

Alternative forms

• ki, cui

Etymology

From Latin quī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ki/

Pronoun

qui

1. who
   • c. 1170, Christian of Troyes, Yvain ou le Chevalier au Lion, lines 1–2:

     Li boins roys Artus de Bretaigne,
     La qui proeche nous ensengne

     The good king Arthur of Britain
     Who teaches us valiance

Descendants

• Middle French: qui
  • French: qui
• Norman: tchi

Old Occitan

Pronoun

qui

1. alternative form of cui

Old Spanish

Etymology

From Latin quī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈki/

Pronoun

qui

1. (interrogative) who, whom
2. (relative) who, whom (after a preposition), which, that

Further reading

• “qui”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Portuguese

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈki/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈki/

• Rhymes: -i

Etymology 1

Noun

qui m (plural quis)

1. chi (name of the Greek letter Χ)

Etymology 2

Pronoun

qui

1. eye dialect spelling of que, representing Brazil Portuguese

Further reading

• “qui”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “qui”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Spanish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *kʷ-

Proto-Indo-European *kʷos

Proto-Italic *kʷoi

Latin quei

Latin quī

Spanish qui

Inherited from Latin quī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈki/ [ˈki]
• Rhymes: -i
• Syllabification: qui

Pronoun

qui

1. (relative, obsolete) who, whom

Further reading

• “qui”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Vietnamese

Noun

qui

1. Alternative spelling of quy.

Verb

qui

1. Alternative spelling of quy.