Relative pronoun was (B1) – German grammar

Use was when there is no noun with a gender to point back to: alles, was ich brauche.

Learn first:Relative clauses: nominative and accusative

Words that take was

Trigger category	Common triggers	Meaning	Relative pronoun	Example
Indefinite words	alles, etwas, nichts, vieles, weniges, manches	everything, something, nothing, much, little, some	was	Ich sehe nichts, was mir gefällt.
Neuter superlatives	das Beste, das Billigste, das Teuerste, das Wichtigste	the best, cheapest, most expensive, most important thing	was	Das ist das Beste, was es gibt.
Neuter ordinals and limiters	das Einzige, das Erste, das Letzte	the only thing, the first thing, the last thing	was	Das ist das Einzige, was fehlt.
Entire preceding clause	Whole main clause (Satzbezug)	", which..." (comments on the whole fact)	, was	Er half mir sofort, was nett war.
Demonstrative das	das (standing alone as "that which")	that which / what	was	Er macht nur das, was er will.

The main points

Use was after alles, etwas, nichts, vieles and manches.
Use was after das Beste, das Wichtigste and das Einzige.
Use , was to comment on a whole sentence.
A real noun is there? Use der, die, das: das Tablet, das …
Preposition + was becomes wo(r)-: worüber, wofür. The verb goes last.

Part 1 of 4

When you use it

1
After alles, nichts, etwas
- Das neue Smartphone bietet alles, was man im Alltag braucht.The new smartphone has everything you need in everyday life.
- An diesen Kopfhörern gibt es wirklich nichts, was mich stört.There is really nothing about these headphones that bothers me.
After words like alles, etwas, nichts, vieles or manches, use was. These words have no gender to match.
Tip: After etwas, das is also correct, especially for one particular thing.
2
After das Beste, das Einzige
- Die hervorragende Bildqualität ist das Beste, was dieser Fernseher zu bieten hat.The excellent picture quality is the best thing this TV has to offer.
- Ein etwas lauter Lüfter ist das Einzige, was mir an diesem Computer nicht gefällt.A slightly loud fan is the only thing I don't like about this computer.
After a neuter superlative or ordinal used as a noun, with no noun after it, use was: das Beste, das Wichtigste, das Einzige.
Tip: das also occurs when you mean one specific thing, but was is the safe choice.
3
Comment on a whole sentence
- Das Paket kam zwei Tage vor dem Liefertermin an, was wirklich praktisch war.The parcel arrived two days early, which was really handy.
- Der Kundenservice hat mein Problem innerhalb von zehn Minuten gelöst, was mich positiv überrascht hat.Customer service solved my problem within ten minutes, which pleasantly surprised me.
Use , was to comment on the whole main clause. In English this is ", which …".

The forms

Words that take was

Trigger category	Common triggers	Meaning	Relative pronoun	Example
Indefinite words	alles, etwas, nichts, vieles, weniges, manches	everything, something, nothing, much, little, some	was	Ich sehe nichts, was mir gefällt.
Neuter superlatives	das Beste, das Billigste, das Teuerste, das Wichtigste	the best, cheapest, most expensive, most important thing	was	Das ist das Beste, was es gibt.
Neuter ordinals and limiters	das Einzige, das Erste, das Letzte	the only thing, the first thing, the last thing	was	Das ist das Einzige, was fehlt.
Entire preceding clause	Whole main clause (Satzbezug)	", which..." (comments on the whole fact)	, was	Er half mir sofort, was nett war.
Demonstrative das	das (standing alone as "that which")	that which / what	was	Er macht nur das, was er will.

What to notice

None of these points back to a noun with a gender. After etwas, das is also possible.

Part 2 of 4

Step by step

1
Look at what comes before
Is it a noun with a gender (der Laptop)? Use der, die or das (P08). Is it alles, nichts, das Beste or a whole sentence? Use was.
- alles → was
2
Comma, then was
Every relative clause starts with a comma. Put was right after it.
- Die Smartwatch hat alles, was …
3
Subject or object?
If the clause has another subject, like man, was is the object. If not, was is the subject.
- …, was man für den Sport braucht (man = subject, was = object)
4
Send the verb to the end
The conjugated verb goes last. With a modal verb, the modal goes last.
- Die Smartwatch hat alles, was man für den Sport braucht.The smartwatch has everything you need for sport.
- Die Smartwatch hat alles, was man für den Sport brauchen kann.The smartwatch has everything you could need for sport.
5
Commenting on a sentence
Finish the main clause, add a comma and was, and put the verb last.
- Das Display ist kratzfest, was im Alltag sehr hilft.The screen is scratch-resistant, which helps a lot in everyday life.

Part 3 of 4

Common mistakes

~~Das ist der beste Kopfhörer, was ich je gekauft habe.~~
Das ist der beste Kopfhörer, den ich je gekauft habe.
Kopfhörer is a masculine noun, so use den, not was.
~~Ich habe alles verstanden, das der Verkäufer erklärt hat.~~
Ich habe alles verstanden, was der Verkäufer erklärt hat.
After alles, use was, not das.
~~Der Akku hält nur zwei Stunden, das mich sehr enttäuscht.~~
Der Akku hält nur zwei Stunden, was mich sehr enttäuscht.
The clause comments on the whole sentence, so use was.

Exceptions

Tap one to open it.

If the noun is there (der beste Computer), the pronoun matches that noun. Use was only when the noun is missing: das Beste, was …
- Das ist der beste Computer, den ich je besessen habe.That is the best computer I have ever owned.
- Das ist das teuerste Mikrofon, das man kaufen kann.That is the most expensive microphone you can buy.
Don't say für was or über was. Use wofür, worüber, woran. Before a vowel, add -r-: wo + r + über.
- Er hat mir das Paket getragen, wofür ich sehr dankbar war.He carried the parcel for me, which I was very grateful for.
- Das ist etwas, woran ich nicht gedacht habe.That is something I hadn't thought of.
In casual speech you may hear was after a neuter noun: das Buch, was ich lese. In writing and exams, use das.
- Das Buch, das ich lese, ist spannend.The book I am reading is exciting.

Don't mix it up

was, das and dass

Relative was follows alles, das Beste or a whole sentence. Relative das points to a neuter noun. The question word was asks. dass means "that".

Word	Grammar function	How to recognize it	Example sentence
was (Relativpronomen)	Relative pronoun with no gendered noun	After alles, nichts, das Beste or a whole clause; verb at the end	Er kauft alles, was neu ist.
das (Relativpronomen)	Relative pronoun for neuter nouns	Points back to a neuter noun (das Gerät); verb at the end	Das Gerät, das neu ist, läuft super.
was (Fragewort)	Question word	Starts a question or an indirect question	Ich weiß nicht, was das Produkt kostet.
dass (Konjunktion)	Conjunction ("that")	After glauben, sagen, hoffen; can't be replaced by "which"	Ich hoffe, dass das Produkt lange hält.

Part 4 of 4

In real life

A customer review of a speaker

A customer reviews a Bluetooth speaker on an online shop and gives it 4 out of 5 stars. · Tap EN for English.

4 von 5 Sternen – Solider Bluetooth-Lautsprecher mit kleinen Schwächen
Der Klang ist wirklich das Beste, was man in dieser Preisklasse bekommen kann.
Das Gerät bietet eigentlich alles, was man für einen Ausflug in den Park braucht.
Es gibt an der Verarbeitung nichts, was billig wirkt.
Allerdings hat die Lieferung fast eine Woche gedauert, was mich ziemlich geärgert hat.
Außerdem ist der Akku nach sechs Stunden leer. Das ist das Einzige, was mich stört.
Trotzdem macht das Gerät genau das, was der Hersteller verspricht.
Ich kann das Produkt für diesen Preis auf jeden Fall weiterempfehlen!

That's the whole topic.

Next topicRelative clauses with wer/was and no noun

Words that take was

The main points

When you use it

After alles, nichts, etwas

After das Beste, das Einzige

Comment on a whole sentence

The forms

Words that take was

Step by step

Look at what comes before

Comma, then was

Subject or object?

Send the verb to the end

Commenting on a sentence

Common mistakes

Exceptions

Don't mix it up

was, das and dass

In real life

Sources