Que vs Lo que

 Yesterday I was in a Duolingo event and another student asked what the meaning of "lo que" was in the sentence "Esto es lo que el Sr. Anda entendio." and didn't it mean "what"? It wasn't a grammar class so the host gave us a short version of the difference between 'que' vs 'lo que'. 'Que' is usually used when you're asking a question versus 'lo que' is used when you're making a statement. For example: "What do I want?" versus "This is not what I want." He challenged us to spend time to look up videos on the topic. So I did.  

The introduction, I think, is more than most could get through, but it appealed to the math major in me 😉. Skip past it if you need to because his explanation made all the difference!

Essentially, 'lo que' is a relative pronoun that can link two relative clauses.

e.g.  This is not what I want.   Esto no es lo que quiero.

Note, both clauses must have conjugated verbs. If the second verb is an infinitive (not conjugated), then you would use que.

 e.g. I don't know what to say.  No se que decir.

Interesting, right? You can also use "lo que" at the beginning of the sentence. For example: "Lo que quiero es..." "What I want is...." or "Lo que necesito es..." "What I need is..."

Esta es importante, no? Lo que necesito es mas tiempo para practicar! Es verdad? 😉