Relative Clauses - Grammar
Celia Carrera Olivares
GRAMMAR:
RELATIVE CLAUSES
First of all, we need to distinguish between defining and non-defining relative clauses:
Defining relative clauses
• A
defining relative clause is a clause which gives essential information about
somebody or something. They are introduced by who, which, whose, whom, and what
1 In
defining relative clauses, we can use that
instead of who/ which
She’s the woman who / that lives next
door.
That’s the book which / that won a prize.
2 Use whose to mean ‘of who’ or ‘of which’.
That’s my neighbour whose dog never
stops barking
3 When who or which are the object of the verb in the relative clause, you can
leave them out.
James is the man (who) I met at the
party.
That’s the shop (which) I told you
about.
4 After a
preposition, use whom for a person
and which for a thing. In informal
English, it is more common to leave out the relative pronoun and put the
preposition after the verb.
- Formal English: My sister’s the only person to whom I can talk. That’s the drawer in which I keep my keys.
- Informal English: My sister’s the only person (who) I can talk to.
5 Use what as a relative pronoun to mean ‘the
thing’ or ‘things which’
She told me what she had seen.
What I like best about London is the
parks
Non-defining relative
clauses
A
non-defining relative clause gives extra, non-essential information about a
person or thing. This clause is separated by commas, or between a comma and a
full stop.
In these
clauses, unlike defining relative clauses, we cannot use that instead of who or which.
My aunt, who doesn’t like cats, was
given a kitten for Christmas.
The palace, which was built in the
12th century, is visited by thousands of tourists.
Which can also be used to refer to the whole of the
preceding clause.
Adriana hasn’t come to class for two weeks,
which is a bit worrying.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Oxenden,
Clive, and Christina Latham-Koenig. “Chapter 7.” New ENGLISH FILE Upper-Intermediate
Student’s Book. N.p., 1997. 100–114. Print.
Gap-fill exercise
Fill in all the gaps, then press "Check" to check your answers. Use the "Hint" button to get a free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. You can also click on the "[?]" button to get a clue. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints or clues!
Exercises links
➣ Mixed-up sentence exercises
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62363/RZPJSBPS.phphttp://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62362/EZMGDSMR.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62361/NFDBUZLL.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62360/LPVTEXSM.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62359/JEBOOBYH.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62358/SDDAHZHV.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62357/DGWXLZXH.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62356/UJFNDSQC.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/62355/ZVNAKBEL.php
http://uk2.hotpotatoes.net/ex/61858/KJBQUYKC.php