Adjective Clauses

Definition:
 
An adjective clause (also called relative clause) is a dependent clause that modifies a
noun or pronoun.

Adjective clauses begin with relative pronouns, including:

 who
 whom
 whose
 that
 which
They may also begin with relative adverbs, such as:
 when
 where
 why

1. There is the mountain that we are going to climb.

2. My blue tennis shoes, which used to be my mom's, were under the bed.
3. Daniel, who was late again today, sits next to me in English.
4. The teacher whom I had in fifth grade really inspired me.
5. Grandpa remembers the old days when there was no television.
6. Fruit that is grown organically is expensive.
7. Students who are intelligent get good grades.
8. Eco-friendly cars that run on electricity help the environment.
9. I know someone whose father served in World War II.
10. The slurping noise he makes is the main reason why Sue does not like to eat soup with
her brother.
11. The kids who were called first will have the best chance of getting a seat.
12. I enjoy telling people about Janet Evanovich, whose latest book was fantastic.
13. The store where the new phone was being sold had a huge line of people outside it.
14. "Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died." - Erma Bombeck
15. Mr. Jackson is the teacher who helped me with my math problems.
16. The bad weather is the reason why I decided to drive instead of walk.
17. Mia is the person whose family owns a garden villa.
18. This is the park where we can walk the dogs.
19. Max, who is Marissa’s older brother, just got back from a trip to Jamaica.
20. Monday is the day when I have my doctor’s appointment.
 Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Adjective Clauses

Restrictive Adjective Clauses:

Definition:
 
An adjective clause is restrictive (also called essential) if it narrows down the word it
modifies. It tells which one of the noun you are writing about. A restrictive adjective
clause is necessary to the meaning of the sentence. It is not separated from the rest of the
sentence by commas.
The players who are wearing the red uniforms  are winning the game.
If we take out the clause, we won't know which players are winning the game. It's a
restrictive or essential clause.

Nonrestrictive Adjective Clauses:

Definition:
 
An adjective clause is nonrestrictive (also called nonessential) if we know exactly who is
being written about without it. A nonrestrictive adjective clause is simply adding extra
information. Nonrestrictive adjective clauses need commas around them.
Those girls, who have been friends for years, are all going to the same college.
Without the clause, we still know that those girls are going to the same college.
The clause is nonrestrictive.
A proper noun is usually followed by a nonrestrictive clause.
Amanda,  who is my best friend, is on the honor roll again.
Without the clause, we know that it is Amanda who is on the honor roll.
 Non- defining Adjective clauses with Quantifiers

1. We can use a non-defining adjective clause with "of which" and "of whom"
after quantifiers:

All, both, each, many, most, neither, none, part, some...

For Example:

Adam has two brothers. Both of them work as an engineer.

Adam has two brothers, both of whom work as an engineer.

Brad has very nice neighbors. I like all of them very much.
Brad has very nice neighbors, all of whom I like very much.

My mother invited many relatives to my birthday. Only a few of them showed up.
My mother invited many relatives to my birthday, only a few of whom showed up.

I talked to an old friend of mine last night. Some of her remarks offended me.
I talked to an old friend of mine last night, some of whose remarks offended me.

2. After a number(one,two etc.; the first, the second etc.; half, a

third etc.)

I want to be flatmate with my friend Daniel. One of his biggest interests is playing basketball.

I want to be flatmate with my friend Daniel, one of whose biggest interests is playing basketbal
There are many books in our school library. I'm quite interested in two of them.

There are many books in our school library, two of which I'm quite interested in.

3. After superlatives (the best, the biggest etc.)

Yesterday, my friend and I caught a lot of fish. The biggest of them was 20 pounds.

Yesterday, my friend and I caught a lot of fish, the biggest of which was 20 pounds.

I met with many beautiful girls at the party last night. The most beautiful of them was Nora.

I met with many beautiful girls at the party last night, the most beautiful of whom was Nora.

Of Which vs Whose
We can use “of which” instead of “whose” for the objects but “of which” is used in non-defining
relative clauses.

This is the machine. I described its properties.

This is the machine whose properties I described.
This is the machine, the properties of which I described.

I stayed at a good hotel. It’s facilities are fabulous.

I stayed at a good hotel whose facilities are fabulous.
I stayed at a good hotel the facilities of which are fabulous.