There are two different types of relative clause:
1. A "defining" or identifying clause, which tells us which person or thing we are talking about.
2. A "non-defining" or non-essential clause, which gives us more information about the person or thing we are talking about. This kind of clause could often be information included in brackets (...)
Example:
The farmer (his name was Fred) sold us some potatoes. The farmer, whose name was Fred, sold us some potatoes.
It is important to see the difference between the two types of clause, as it affects:a. the choice of pronoun used to introduce the clause,b. the punctuation - you must use commas with a non-defining clause
1.- DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
As the name suggests, these clauses give essential information to define or identify the person or thing we are talking about. Obviously, this is only necessary if there is more than one person or thing involved.
Example:Elephants who marry mice are very unusual.In this sentence we understand that there are many elephants, but it is clear that we are only talking the ones who marry mice.
PunctuationCommas are not used in defining relative clauses.
Relative pronouns
The following relative pronouns are used in defining relative clauses:
Person : subject: who/that, object:who/whom/that/ø , possesive:whose
Place : subject:which/that, object :which/that/ø , possesive:whose
Time: object:when
Reason:object:why
Notes:
The woman who/that spoke at the meeting was very knowledgeable.
2. Who, whom and which can be replaced by that. This is very common in spoken English.
3. The relative pronoun can be omitted (ø) when it is the object of the clause:
The mouse that the elephant loved was very beautiful.OR The mouse the elephant loved was very beautiful.
Both of these sentences are correct, though the second one is more common in spoken English.
In the following examples, the man is the subject of both verbs and cannot be omitted:
The man who told me is coming later.
The man that told me is coming later.
In the following examples, the woman is the object of the verb 'saw' and, therefore the pronoun can be omitted:
The woman who I saw is coming later.
The woman whom I saw is coming later.
The woman that I saw is coming later.
The woman I saw is coming later.
4. Whose is used for things as well as for people.
Examples:
The man whose car was stolen.
A tree whose leaves have fallen.
5. Whom is very formal and is only used in written English. You can use who/that, or omit the pronoun completely :
The doctor whom/who/that/ø I was hoping to see wasn't on duty.
6. That normally follows words like something, anything, everything, nothing, all, and superlatives.
Examples:
There's something that you should know.
It was the best film that I've ever seen.
Examples:
.Nothing that anyone does can replace my lost bag.
.They live in the house whose roof is full of holes.
.A clown is someone who makes you laugh.
.An elephant is an animal that lives in hot countries.
.The plums that were in the fridge were delicious. I have eaten them.
.Where are the plums (that) I put in the fridge?
.Has anyone seen the book I was reading?
.Let's go to a country where the sun always shines.
WHERE TO PUT THE PREPOSITION IN A RELATIVE CLAUSE
There are often prepositions in relative clauses, and the relative pronoun is the object of the preposition. This means that the preposition can sometimes be omitted.
The preposition is normally placed at the end of the relative clause:
Is that the man (who) you arrived with?
Do you know the girl (that) John is talking to?
In formal or written English, the preposition is often placed before the relative pronoun, and in this case the pronoun cannot be omitted:
The person with whom he is negotiating is the Chairman of a large company.
It is a society to which many important people belong.
However, this is unusual in spoken English.
Examples:
The jungle the elephant lived in was full of strange and unusual animals.
He was very fond of the mouse that he lived with.
The tree under which they had their home was the largest and oldest in the jungle.
In the middle of the jungle was a river that all the animals went to every day.
It was the stream in which the elephant and the mouse preferred to swim.
2.- NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
The information in these clauses is not essential. It tells us more about someone or something, but it does not help us to identify them or it. Compare:
1. Elephants that love mice are very unusual. (This tells us which elephants we are talking about).
2. Elephants, which are large and grey, can sometimes be found in zoos. (This gives us some extra information about elephants - we are talking about all elephants, not just one type or group).
3. John's mother, who lives in Scotland, has 6 grandchildren. (We know who John's mother is, and he only has one. The important information is the number of grandchildren, but the fact that she lives in Scotland might be followed with the words "by the way" - it is additional information).
PunctuationNon-defining relative clauses are always separated from the rest of the sentence by commas. The commas have a similar function to brackets:My friend John has just written a best-selling novel. (He went to the same school as me) > My friend John, who went to the same school as me, has just written a best-selling novel.
Notes:
1. In non-defining clauses, you cannot use ‘that’ instead of who, whom or which.
2. You cannot leave out the relative pronoun, even when it is the object of the verb in the relative clause:
He gave me the letter, which was in a blue envelope.
He gave me the letter, which I read immediately
3. The preposition in these clauses can go at the end of the clause, e.g. This is Stratford-on-Avon, which you have all heard about.
This pattern is often used in spoken English, but in written or formal English you can also put the preposition before the pronoun: e.g. Stratford-on-Avon, about which many people have written is Shakespeare’s birthplace.
4. Non-defining clauses can be introduced by expressions like all of, many of + relative pronoun: Examples:
a. There were a lot of people at the party, many of whom I had known for years.
b. He was carrying his belongings, many of which were broken.
5. The relative pronoun which at the beginning of a non-defining relative clause, can refer to all the information contained in the previous part of the sentence, rather than to just one word.
a. Chris did really well in his exams, which was a big surprise. (= the fact that he did well in his exams was a big surprise).
b. An elephant and a mouse fell in love, which is most unusual. (= the fact that they fell in love is unusual).
Examples:
a.My grandmother, who is dead now, came from the North of England.
b. I spoke to Fred, who explained the problem.
c. The elephant looked at the tree, under which she had often sat.
d. We stopped at the museum, which we’d never been into.
e. She’s studying maths, which many people hate.
f. I’ve just met Susan, whose husband works in London.
g. He had thousands of books, most of which he had read.
EXERCISE 1
Q1 - Stratford is the town ____ Shakespeare was born in.
which
Q2 - The hotel ____ we stayed was good.
where
Q3 - The man ____ interviewed me seemed friendly enough.
who
Q4 - The British Prime Minister, ____ was interviewed yesterday, denied responsibility.
who
Q5 - The car ____ was stolen belonged to my partner.
Either could be used here.
Q6 - The house ____ they have rented is in the centre of town.
Either could be used here.
Q7 - The crowd, ____ were making a lot of noise, were told to move on by the police.
who
Q8 - The company, _____ CEO is under investigation, is doing very badly.
whose
Q9 - The capital city, ____ cathedral is one of the finest in the country, is worth visiting.
whose
Q10 - The school, ____ has seven hundred students, had the bext exam results in the country last year.
which
EXERCISE 2
1. Where is the bottle of Coke x I bought this morning?
2. I talked to the girl whose car had broken down in front of the shop.
3. Mr Jones, who is a taxi driver, lives on the corner.
4. There is the car x I'd like to buy.
5. He cleaned the car which had an accident.
6. This is the girl who comes from Spain.
7. That's Peter, the boy who (x) has just arrived at the airport.
8. What did you do with the money x your mother lent you?
EXERCISE 3
1. This is the boy WHO had an accident.
2. Yesterday I saw a car WHICHwas really old.
3. Mandy is the girl (X)I met on Friday.
4. I haven't seen Peter, WHOSE brother is five, for a long time now.
5. The robber stole the car(X) the lady parked in front of the supermarket.
6. This is the man WHOSE house is on fire.
7. Can I talk to the girl WHO is sitting on the bench?
8. The book(X) gave me is great.
EXERCISE 4
1. My flat WHICH was built in the 1920s is in an old part of the city.
2. There are lots of bars and restaurants in the neighbourhood WHERE I live .
3. My neighbour WHO works on the fruit farms around the city comes from Ecuador.
4.The neighbour WHOSE flat is above mine makes a lot of noise walking around.
5. The traffic is also very noisy THAT passes my flat.
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