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RelativeClauses

Weuserelativeclausestogiveadditionalinformationaboutsomethingwithoutstartinganother
sentence.Bycombiningsentenceswitharelativeclause,yourtextbecomesmorefluentand
youcanavoidrepeatingcertainwords.

HowtoFormRelativeClauses
Imagine,agirlistalkingtoTom.Youwanttoknowwhosheisandaskafriendwhetherhe
knowsher.Youcouldsay:
AgirlistalkingtoTom.Doyouknowthegirl?

Thatsoundsrathercomplicated,doesn'tit?Itwouldbeeasierwitharelativeclause:youput
bothpiecesofinformationintoonesentence.Startwiththemostimportantthingyouwantto
knowwhothegirlis.
Doyouknowthegirl

Asyourfriendcannotknowwhichgirlyouaretalkingabout,youneedtoputintheadditional
informationthegirlistalkingtoTom.Usethegirlonlyinthefirstpartofthesentence,in
thesecondpartreplaceitwiththerelativepronoun(forpeople,usetherelativepronoun
who).Sothefinalsentenceis:
DoyouknowthegirlwhoistalkingtoTom?

RelativePronouns
relative

use

pronoun
who

subjectorobjectpronounforpeople

example
Itoldyouaboutthe
womanwholivesnextdoor.

which

subjectorobjectpronounforanimalsandthings

Doyouseethecatwhichis
lyingontheroof?

which

referringtoawholesentence

Hecouldnt
readwhichsurprisedme.

whose

possessionforpeopleanimalsandthings

Doyouknowthe
boywhosemotherisanurse?

whom

objectpronounforpeople,especiallyinnondefiningrelative

Iwasinvitedbythe

clauses(indefiningrelativeclauseswecolloquially

professorwhomImetatthe

preferwho)

conference.

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that

RelativeClauses

subjectorobjectpronounforpeople,animalsandthingsin

Idontlikethe

definingrelativeclauses(whoorwhicharealsopossible)

tablethatstandsinthe
kitchen.

SubjectPronounorObjectPronoun?
Subjectandobjectpronounscannotbedistinguishedbytheirformswho,which,thatare
usedforsubjectandobjectpronouns.Youcan,however,distinguishthemasfollows:
Iftherelativepronounisfollowedbyaverb,therelativepronounisasubjectpronoun.Subject
pronounsmustalwaysbeused.
theapplewhichislyingonthetable

Iftherelativepronounisnotfollowedbyaverb(butbyanounorpronoun),therelative
pronounisanobjectpronoun.Objectpronounscanbedroppedindefiningrelativeclauses,
whicharethencalledContactClauses.
theapple(which)Georgelayonthetable

RelativeAdverbs
Arelativeadverbcanbeusedinsteadofarelativepronounpluspreposition.Thisoftenmakes
thesentenceeasiertounderstand.
ThisistheshopinwhichIboughtmybike.
ThisistheshopwhereIboughtmybike.
relative
adverb

meaning

use

example

when

in/onwhich referstoatimeexpression

thedaywhenwemethim

where

in/atwhich

referstoaplace

theplacewherewemethim

why

forwhich

referstoareason

thereasonwhywemethim

DefiningRelativeClauses
Definingrelativeclauses(alsocalledidentifyingrelativeclausesorrestrictiverelativeclauses)
givedetailedinformationdefiningageneraltermorexpression.Definingrelativeclausesare
notputincommas.
Imagine,Tomisinaroomwithfivegirls.OnegirlistalkingtoTomandyouasksomebody
whetherheknowsthisgirl.Heretherelativeclausedefineswhichofthefivegirlsyoumean.
DoyouknowthegirlwhoistalkingtoTom?

Definingrelativeclausesareoftenusedindefinitions.
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RelativeClauses

Aseamanissomeonewhoworksonaship.

Objectpronounsindefiningrelativeclausescanbedropped.(Sentenceswitharelativeclause
withouttherelativepronounarecalledContactClauses.)
Theboy(who/whom)wemetyesterdayisverynice.

NonDefiningRelativeClauses
Nondefiningrelativeclauses(alsocallednonidentifyingrelativeclausesornonrestrictive
relativeclauses)giveadditionalinformationonsomething,butdonotdefineit.Nondefining
relativeclausesareputincommas.
Imagine,Tomisinaroomwithonlyonegirl.Thetwoaretalkingtoeachotherandyouask
somebodywhetherheknowsthisgirl.Heretherelativeclauseisnondefiningbecauseinthis
situationitisobviouswhichgirlyoumean.
Doyouknowthegirl,whoistalkingtoTom?

Note:Innondefiningrelativeclauses,who/whichmaynotbereplacedwiththat.
Objectpronounsinnondefiningrelativeclausesmustbeused.
Jim,who/whomwemetyesterday,isverynice.

HowtoShortenRelativeClauses?
Relativeclauseswithwho,which,thatassubjectpronouncanbereplacedwithaparticiple.
Thismakesthesentenceshorterandeasiertounderstand.
Itoldyouaboutthewomanwholivesnextdoor.Itoldyouaboutthewomanlivingnextdoor.
Doyouseethecatwhichislyingontheroof?Doyouseethecatlyingontheroof?

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