ADJECTIVE

CLAUSE

J A S M I N G . R AY O S
 DESCRIBE YOURSELF
IN THREE WORDS

I am a kind of person who

________________________________
__, _________________________,
________________________________
________.
 An adjective clause modifies a
WHAT IS AN noun.
ADJECTIVE
CLAUSE? Examples:
I saw the man who robbed the
-An adjective bank.
clause modifies
a noun.
I saw the man= main clause
who robbed the bank=
adjective clause; modifies the
noun ‘man.’
WHAT IS AN
ADJECTIVE
CLAUSE? Examples:

-An adjective
clause closely • The bag that is on
follows the the table is mine.√
noun it
modifies. • The bag is mine that
is on the table. X
 Examples:

They helped the woman. She got hurt.

USING PRONOUNS IN ADJ.
CLAUSES(AS SUBJECTS)

who, which, that is used as a They helped the woman who got hurt.
subject in an adjective clause.

who = used for people

which = used for things
that = used for both people
The books are on the table. They are
and things mine.

The books which/that are on the table

are mine.
 Examples:

USING PRONOUNS IN ADJ. The girl whom/who/that I saw in the park

CLAUSES(AS OBJECTS)
was Alicia.
who, whom, which, that - is used as
an object of the verb in an adjective
clause.
who(m)= used for people
which = used for things
that = used for both people and things

The movie which/that we saw last night

was very boring.
 • In spoken English, who is more commonly
used instead of whom.
• Whom is generally used only in very formal
English.
• An object pronoun is often omitted from an
adjective clause. Example: The man I saw
yesterday was my father’s colleague.
POINTS TO NOTE (the man who/that=the man)
The movie we saw last night was
very boring. (the movie
that/which=the movie)
• A subject pronoun cannot be omitted.
Example: I saw the man who robbed the
store. (can’t omit who)
 Examples:

The music was good. We listened to it last night.

USING PRONOUNS IN ADJ. The music to which we listened last night was good.
CLAUSES(AS AN OBJECT OF
THE PREPOSITION)

She is the girl. I told you about her.

She is the girl about whom I told you.

 • In very formal English, the preposition comes at
the beginning of the adjective clause, as see in
the examples just provided. Usually, however,
in everyday usage, the preposition comes after
the subject and verb of the adjective clauses.
• So, the same sentence can also be structured
in the following ways:
The music to which we listened last night
POINTS TO NOTE
was good.

a) The music which we listened to last night was

good. √
b) The music that we listened to last night was
good. √
c) The music we listened to last night was good.
√
 Examples:

I know the man whose house got broken into.

USING ‘WHOSE’ IN ADJECTIVE CLAUSES

Whose indicates possession and is used like other

possessive pronouns used as adjectives, like his,
her, its and their.

Whose is always connected to a noun and is

placed at the beginning of an adjective clause.

Whose cannot be omitted.

The police questioned the man whose son was

kidnapped.
 1. Don’t confuse whose with who’s [contracted form
of who is or who has]. They have the same 9
pronunciation but are not the same things.
Examples:
• I know the boy whose father got killed in the Kargil
war.
• That’s the boy from our swimming club who’s
[who is] preparing for the National Championship.
• That’s the girl who’s been [who has been] looking
POINTS TO NOTE after Mrs Sen after her husband was killed in the
riot.
2.When has is a helping verb in the present perfect,
as in the third example above, it is usually
contracted with who in speaking and informal
writing. But if has is a main verb, it is NOT
contracted with WHO.

Example:
I know a man who eats only nuts and raisins.
 NOTE:
If you use where, do not use a preposition. But if you
DO NOT use where, you must use a preposition of
place.

Examples:
USING ‘WHERE’ IN ADJECTIVE CLAUSES The building where he lives is very old.
Where is used in an adjective clause to
modify a place. (no preposition)
Example: The building in which he lives is very old.
The building where he lives is very old.
(preposition: in)
The building which he lives in is very old.
(preposition: in)
The building that he lives in is very old.
(preposition: in)
The building he lives in is very old. (preposition:
in)
 NOTE:

Only if which is used to modify a noun of

time, you can use a preposition of time.
Otherwise, do not use any preposition.
USING ‘WHEN’ IN ADJECTIVE CLAUSES

When is used in an adjective clause to modify a

noun of time (year, day, time, century etc.)

Examples:
Example:
I’ll never forget the day when I met you.

I’ll never forget the day on which I met you.

(preposition: on)
I’ll never forget the day that I met you.
I’ll never forget the day I met you.
 Rule 2:
A comma is generally used if an adjective clause
modifies a proper
noun.
Examples:
• India, which is home to diverse cultures, upholds the
tenet of ‘live and let live’ as its fundamental tenet.
• Mrs. Smith, who is now in her 90s, lives in an old age
PUNCTUATING ADJ. CLAUSES
home.

Rule 3:
If no commas are used, any possible pronouns may
be used in the adjective clause. But when commas
are used, the pronoun ‘that’ cannot be used.

Examples:
• The lady you saw last night at the party is the CEO of
our company.
• Ms. Sharma, whom you saw last night at the party, is
the CEO of our company.
 Rule 1:
An adjective phrase still modifies a noun, just as
an adjective clause would, but does not contain
a subject and verb.
Example:
The girl who is standing at the door is Gloria.
The girl at the door is Gloria.
REDUCING ADJ. CLAUSES TO ADJ. PHRASES

Rule 2:
If the adjective clause contains the be form of a
verb, omit the subject pronoun and the be
form.
Example:
The man who is talking to John is from Korea.
The man talking to John is from Korea.

REDUCING ADJ. CLAUSES TO ADJ. PHRASES
Rule 3:
If there is no be form of a verb in the adjective
clause, it is sometimes possible to omit the
subject pronoun and change the verb to its –ing
form.
Example:
The interior designing program, which consists of eight
courses, can be taken either part-time or full-time.
The interior designing program, consisting of eight
courses, can be done either part-time or full-time.
Rule 4:
If the adjective clause requires commas, the
adjective phrase
requires commas as well.
 ACTIVITY 2. Identifying Adjective Clauses.

Identify the main clause and the adjective

clause in each statement.

1. Mike, whose ancestors came from

Ireland, marched in the St. Patrick's Day
LET’S TRY! parade.
2. The woman who lives next door is a
registered nurse.
3. Phil is reading The Call of the Wild, which
is Jack London's most famous book.
4. Newton, Iowa, is the town where Barbara
was born.
5. The Harveys have a dog that is fourteen
years old.
 ACTIVITY 2. Combining Sentences

Combine the following sentences into one using

an adjective clause.

1. My friend missed the lecture. + She

borrowed Sam’s notes to review.
LET’S TRY!
ANSWER: My friend who missed the
lecture borrowed Sam’s notes to review.
2. The candidate won by a landslide. +
Many people admire him.

ANSWER: The candidate whom many

people admire won by a landslide.
 ACTIVITY 2. Combining Sentences

Combine the following sentences into one using

an adjective clause.

3. I admire Professor Brooks. + His books

ANSWER! were stolen
ANSWER: I admire Professor Brooks,
whose books were stolen.
4. I met a man on the bus today. + He works
at the World Bank.
ANSWER: The man that I met on the
bus today works at the World Bank.
 ACTIVITY 2. Combining Sentences

Combine the following sentences into one using

an adjective clause.

5. My new car needs very little gas. + It was

ANSWER! a gift from my son.
ANSWER: My new car, which was a gift
from my son, needs very little gas.
6. July 25 was sad for me. + I left home on
that day.
ANSWER: July 25, when I left home, was sad
for me.
 ACTIVITY 2. Combining Sentences

Combine the following sentences into one using

an adjective clause.

7. I have always wanted to visit the big

ANSWER! house. + Julio lives in that house.
ANSWER:I have always wanted to visit
the big house where Julio lives.

8. My cousin ran away. + I don’t know why.

ANSWER: I don’t know why my cousin
ran away.