Adjective clauses

Hello everyone. Today I will be talking about adjective clauses.

In English grammar, an adjective clause is a dependent clause used as an adjective
within a sentence. Also known as an adjectival clause or relative clause.
It usually begins with a relative pronoun : a word that relates the information in the
adjective clause to a word or a phrase in the main clause.
This clauses most often begin with one of there three relative pronouns : who , which,
that. All three refer to a noun, but who refers only to people and which refers only to things.
That may refer to either people or things. Here are few examples :
1. Everyone turned and looked at Toya, who was still standing behind the counter.
2. Charlie’s old coffee machine, which hadn’t worked in years, suddenly started to gurgle
and splutter.
3. The ticking sound was coming from the little box that was sitting on the windowsill.

In the first example, the relative pronoun who refers to the proper noun Toya. In
sentence two, which refers to the noun phrase Charlie’s old coffee machine . And in the third
sentence, that refers to the little box. In each of examples, the relative pronoun functions as
the subject of the adjective clauses.
Sometimes we can omit the relative pronoun from an adjective clause – as long as the
sentence still makes sense without it. For example : The poem that Nina chose was “We Real
Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks. ( this is the sentence with the relative pronoun) The poem Nina
chose was “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks.
Both sentences are correct, though the second version may be considered just a little
less formal that the first one. In the second sentence, the gap left by the omitted pronoun is
called zero relative pronoun.
There are two main types of adjectival clauses : nonrestrictive and restrictive.
An adjective clause set off from the main clause by commas is said to be nonrestrictive. For
example : “Old Profesor Legree, who dresses like a teenager, is going through his second
childhood.”. This who clause is nonrestrictive because the information in the clause doesn’t
restrict or limit the noun it modifies ( Old Professor Legree) . The commas signify that the
adjective clause provides added, not essential, information.
On the other hand, an adjective cause that is restrictive should not be set off by commas . For
example : “An older person who dresses like a teenager is often an object of ridicule.” . Here,
the adjective clause restricts or limits the meaning of the noun it modifies ( An older person) .
So to review, an adjective clause that can be omitted from a sentence without affecting the
basic meaning of the sentence should be set off by commas and is nonrestrictive and an
adjective clause that cannot be omitted from a sentence without affecting the basic meaning of
the sentence should not be set off by commas and is restrictive.