Relative Pronouns

What is a relative pronoun?

A relative pronoun is one which is used to refer to nouns mentioned previously,
whether they are people, places, things, animals, or ideas. Relative pronouns can be
used to join two sentences.
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There are only a few relative pronouns in the English language. The most common
are which, that, whose, whoever, whomever, who, and whom. In some situations, the
words what, when, and where can also function as relative pronouns. Because there are
only a few of them, there are also just a few rules for using relative pronouns. Keep
them in mind as you write.
 Relative clauses are typically introduced by relative pronouns, and that the relative
pronoun can function as a possessive pronoun, an object, or a subject.
 When relative pronouns introduce restrictive relative clauses, no comma is used to
separate the restrictive clause from the main clause.
 In American English, the relative pronoun whom is used rarely. You may notice this in
conversations, but it is best to use the term when writing to ensure that your work is
grammatically correct.
Relative Pronouns Examples
The following sentences contain examples of relative pronouns. The relative pronoun
in each example is italicized.
1. The cyclist who won the race trained hard.
2. The pants that I bought yesterday are already stained.
3. The four team leaders, whoever the committee selects, will be at tomorrow’s meeting.
4. Spaghetti, which we eat at least twice a week, is one of my family’s favorite meals.
5. Where did you buy the dress that you wore last week?
6. The book, when it was finally returned, was torn and stained.
7. The store on the corner, where we usually buy all of our art supplies, burned to the
ground.
Relative Pronouns Exercises
The following exercises will help you gain greater understanding about how relative
pronouns work. Choose the best answer to complete each sentence.
1. The festival, ______________ lasted all day, ended with a banquet.
A. That
B. Who
C. Which
D. What
2. I am looking for someone __________ can watch my dog while I go on vacation.
A. Which
B. Who
C. Whom
D. Whoever
3. The police needed details _____________ could help identify the robber.
A. Who
B. Whatever
C. That
D. What
4. I’d like to take you to a café _______________ serves excellent coffee.
A. What
B. Whatever
C. Which
D. Whichever
5. The clubhouse, in __________ the dance was held, housed about 200 people.
A. Which
B. Where
C. That
D. Whom
6. You can choose one person, __________ you like, to share the cruise with you.
A. Whomever
B. That
C. Which
D. Whom
7. I saw the shoes __________ you bought last week on sale for less this week.
A. When
B. That
C. Who
D. Whom
8. The winners, __________ known, will receive money and other prizes.
A. Whoever
B. Who
C. When
D. That
9. This is the place __________ we met.
A. When
B. Where
C. Who
D. That
10. The baby, ________ nap had been interrupted, wailed loudly.
A. Whose
B. Whomever
C. Whom
D. Who
Answers
1. C – The festival, which lasted all day, ended with a banquet.
2. B – I am looking for someone who can watch my dog while I go on vacation.
3. C – The police needed details that could help identify the robber.
4. C – I’d like to take you to a café which serves excellent coffee.
5. A – The clubhouse, in which the dance was held, housed about 200 people.
6. A – You can choose one person, whomever you like, to share the cruise with you.
7. B – I saw the shoes that you bought last week on sale for less this week.
8. C – The winners, when known, will receive money and other prizes.
9. B – This is the place where we met.
10. A – The baby, whose nap had been interrupted, wailed loudly.
List of Relative Pronouns
Who
Whom
That
Which
Whoever
Whomever
Whichever
Read this letter from Ben to his friend Sheila. For each space, put a relative
pronoun:

whose - where - when - who - which - that

 Where it is possible to leave the empty space without a relative pronoun,

write 0 (zero) in the box.

 Where both which and that can be used, use that.

Dear Sheila,

In your last letter, you asked me to tell you about all the things I did during
my summer vacation.
We went to Vancouver (1)______________I have some old friends
(2) _____________ I haven't seen for about three years. My friend Tim, (3)
_____________mother I wrote about in my last letter to you, came with me and we
had a great time. We flew into Vancouver on Monday 24th, (4) ____________was
also my birthday.

The first thing we did was to visit the wonderful aquarium in the city center (5)
_____________there are three killer whales and a whole crowd of seals, penguins
and dolphins. We arrived in the late afternoon (6) ____________all the animals are
fed so it was wonderful to see the dolphins leaping out of the water to get the fish
(7) _____________ they love to eat so much.

The following day, (8) _____________ was cloudy and rainy unfortunately, we
went to a museum (9) _____________ they have some dinosaur skeletons
(10) _____________ local people have found in the area. The horrible weather
never improved all day so we visited a superb seafood restaurant later in the
afternoon and had an early dinner. The waiters, (11) _____________ were all
dressed in traditional fishermen's clothes, were very friendly and told us about the
history of the restaurant (12) _____________ name was The Jolly Whaler. The
 restaurant, (13) _____________ has been open since 1888, was once visited by
the American President J.F. Kennedy and his wife Jackie.

The skies were blue on Thursday and we spent some time out on the sea in a large
boat (14) _____________ we hired. I caught a big fish (15) _____________
the captain said was the biggest he'd seen this year. I felt very proud! We left on
Thursday evening after a mini-vacation (16) _____________ helped me to relax a
lot and now I have returned to work.

The next time (17) _____________ you write to me, you must tell me about
YOUR last vacation.

Bye for now Sheila,

Ben
Fill in the blanks with relative pronouns:
1. Blessed be the moment _______ I first stepped into the school.
A.that B.when C.where D.which
2. The film star gave a party ________ cost Rs. 10,000.
A.where B.who C.that D.none of the above
3. My aunt, with ______ we went shopping, took us to dinner.
A.whom B.who C.whose D.which
4.This is all _______ I wanted to say.
A.whom B.whose C.that D.which
5. Very few of the journalists _________ he had invited turned up for his press
conference.
A.whom B.who C.whose D.which
6. I do not want you to prepare from the same books _________ others have been using.
A.whose B.that C.who D.whom
7. The policeman __________ we approached for help turned out to be a very
knowledgeable person.
A.who B.that C.which D.whom
8. Carefully listen to _________ the guide says.
A.where B.who C.which D.what
Pick out the relative pronouns and their antecedents in these sentences. If there is no
antecedent, say so:
9.These two small suitcases are all that I will carry with me.
A.I; antecedent - suitcases
B.I; antecedent - these
C.that; antecedent - suitcases
D.that; antecedent - these
Select the relative pronoun and their antecedent in the following sentence.
10.Do you know the reason why I have called you?
A.I; antecedent - you
B.I; antecedent - reason
C.why; antecedent - you
D.why; antecedent - reason

Who, Which, Whom, What, Whose, That

OCTOBER 19, 2017 -

Fill in the blanks with an appropriate relative pronoun.

1________________ she said made me angry.

A. That B. What C. Which
2. She has acted in a movie ________________ name I don’t remember.
A. which B. what C. whose
3. The only thing ________________ keeps me awake is tea.
A. that B. what C. which
4. I have got something ________________ belongs to you.
A. which B. that C. what
5. She married a nice young guy ________________ was her senior at college.
A. who B. whom C. which
6. This is the house ________________
A. where I was born B. that I was born in C.in which I was born D. All of the
above
7. It is a story ________________ will captivate readers of all ages.
A. that B. which C. Either could be used here
8. The proposal ________________ she put forward was quite interesting.
A. that B. which C. Either could be used here
9. She is somebody ________________ really can’t stand.
A.I B .that I C. Either could be used here
10. She has married someone ________________ I really admire.
A. who B. whom C. Either could be used here
11. What is the name of the tall girl ________________ just walked in?
A. who B. that C. Either could be used here
12. Is that your car ________________ is parked outside?
A .that B. which C. Either could be used here

Answers
1. What she said made me angry.
2. She has acted in a movie whose name I don’t remember.
3. The only thing that keeps me awake is tea.
4. I have got something that belongs to you.
5. She married a nice young guy who was her senior at college.
6. This is the house that I was born in / where I was born / in which I was
born.
7. It is a story that / which will captivate readers of all ages.
8. The proposal which / that she put forward was quite interesting.
9. She is somebody I / that I really can’t stand.
10. She has married someone who / whom I really admire.
11. What is the name of the tall girl who / that just walked in?
12. Is that your car that / which is parked outside?

Choose the correct option for the sentences below.

1.They said they were going to have twins, ______ surprised everybody.
A. that B. which C. what D. whose
2.This is the man ______.
A. who I used to work with. B. with whom I used to work.
C.I used to work with. D. with who I used to work.
2. They've caught the driver ______ caused the car accident.
A. who B.– C. that D. which
3. Several men in plainclothes, ______ were armed, forced him to go with them.
A. who some B. whom some C. some of whom D. some who
4. She's going with a friend ______ I really don't like.
A. whom B. who C. that D. which
5. She's going with a friend ______ I really don't like.
A. whom B. who C. that D. which

1
Choose the correct option to complete the sentences below.

1.Did you really understand_____________ I told you?

A.that B. what C.which
2.2Mr. Dean, ______________had recently been fired, had a long list of misconducts.
A. who B. which C. that
3.The victims, most of______________ were adults, are being identified by the US
authorities.
A. whom B. which C. who
4.4I like the scene____________ Dorothy meets Scarecrow.
A. what B .where C. which
5.This is the man____________ I am in love with.
A. whom B. who C. which
6.6I wasn't honest with Kenneth, ____________made him furious.
A.__ B. that C. which
7.The chancellor, _______________ sons were arrested in the corruption operation,
resigned yesterday.
A. both of whom B. both of whose C. both whose
8.The police searched the vehicle_______________ the gun was found.
A. which B. where C. that
9.The driver, _______________contract finishes at the end of the season, doesn't want
to talk about his future.
A. whom B. whose C. who
10.0Between 2000 and 2005, she wrote three novels, _____________was published.
A none which B. none of which C. either of which

Relative Clauses and Relative Pronouns

Relative Clause
This is a clause that generally modifies a noun or a noun phrase and is often
introduced by a relative pronoun (which, that, who, whom, whose). A relative
clause connects ideas by using pronouns that relate to something previously
mentioned and allows the writer to combine two independent clauses into one
sentence. A relative clause is also known as an adjective clause. There are two
types of relative clauses: restrictive and nonrestrictive.

Here are a few examples:

o The book that she read was important for her literature review. (restrictive)
o The participants who were interviewed volunteered to be part of the
study. (restrictive)
o Walden University, which is entirely online, has main administrative
offices in Baltimore and Minneapolis. (nonrestrictive)
 Relative Pronouns

Referring to a human Referring to something Possessive

other than a human

Restrictive who, whom, that* which, that** whose

Nonrestrictive (with who, whom Which whose

commas)

* In APA 7, per Section 4.19, use "who" or "whom" instead of "that" when referring
to a human.

** Although both "which" and "that are grammatically correct in restrictive clauses,
APA prefers "that" for restrictive clauses. See APA 7, Sections 4.19-4.21 for more
information on this topic.

 Take this quiz on Grammar Diagnostic Quiz to test your understanding of

relative pronouns.
 Use relative clauses to create more sentence variety.

Restrictive Clauses

Restrictive Clause
A restrictive clause restricts or defines the meaning of a noun or noun phrase and
provides necessary information about the noun in the sentence. It is not separated
from the rest of the sentence by commas. Restrictive clauses are more common
in writing than nonrestrictive clauses. A restrictive clause is also sometimes
referred to as an essential clause or phrase.

Here are a few examples:

o The student who sits in the back of the room asks a lot of questions.
o The results that I obtained may invoke positive social change.
o The journalist whose story I read yesterday has won prizes for her work.

When the relative pronoun functions as the object of the sentence, it can (and
usually is) omitted from the relative clause.

Here are a few examples:

 o The results that I obtained may invoke positive social change.
o The article that I requested did not arrive on time.
o The participants who I interviewed met me at the local library.

Nonrestrictive Clauses

Nonrestrictive Clause
A nonrestrictive clause adds additional information to a sentence. It is usually a
proper noun or a common noun that refers to a unique person, thing, or event.
It uses commas to show that the information is additional. The commas almost
act like parentheses within the sentence. If the information between the commas
is omitted, readers will still understand the overall meaning of the sentence. A
nonrestrictive clause is also known as a nonessential clause or phrase.

Here are a few examples:

o I want to thank my father, Mark Smith, for all of his love and support.
o With the nonrestrictive clause omitted: I want to thank my father for
all of his love and support.
o The hypothesis, which I tested throughout the research, was rejected.
o With the nonrestrictive clause omitted: The hypothesis was rejected.
o I have found the article, which I have been looking for.
o With the nonrestrictive clause omitted: I have found the article.

Although "that" is sometimes used in restrictive clauses, it is not allowed in

nonrestrictive clauses.

o CORRECT: Minneapolis, which has a population of about 400,000, is

the largest city in Minnesota.
o INCORRECT: Minneapolis, that has a population of about 400,000, is
the largest city in Minnesota.

o CORRECT: I had to fix my printer, which I bought less than a year ago.
o INCORRECT: I had to fix my printer, that I bought less than a year ago.

A relative pronoun cannot be deleted in a nonrestrictive clause.

o CORRECT: Minneapolis, which has a population of about 400,000, is

the largest city in Minnesota.
o INCORRECT: Minneapolis, has a population of about 400,000, is the
largest city in Minnesota.

o CORRECT: I had to fix my printer, which I bought less than a year ago.
 o INCORRECT: I had to fix my printer, I bought less than a year ago.

Reduced Relative Clauses

In academic writing, relative clauses are often reduced for a more concise style.
This also creates more sentence variety. When reducing a relative clause, it is
necessary to delete the relative pronoun and either delete or change the verb.
Here are some examples:

 Gun control is a controversial issue that is about personal rights. ("be" +

prepositional phrase)
 The steps that were followed were explained in the Methods section.
(passive)
 Other researchers who are exploring the same topic have discovered
similar solutions. (progressive verb tense)
 Participants who were available to meet in my office completed their
interview there. ("be" + "-able" adjective)
 Some of the subjects lived in urban areas that had with high crime rates.
("have" as a main verb is replaced by "with")
 In this paper, I reviewed many research articles that
addressed addressing the topic of gun control. (linking verbs or verbs
describing facts can be changed to "–ing" clauses)
 The changes that are to be implemented with the new curriculum
revisions are outlined in the handout. ("to" clauses)