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RELATIVE CLAUSES
There are three kinds of relative clauses: defining, non-defining and connective.
DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
They describe the antecedent (the preceding noun) in such a way as to distinguish it from other nouns of the same class. This clause is essential to the clear understanding of the noun.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS
PEOPLE / WHO/WHOM/THAT (whom: formal, as the object or following a preposition)THINGS / WHICH/THAT
POSSESSIVE / WHOSE (it replaces ‘his/her/Mary’s…)
WHAT: It replaces ‘ the thing/s that’. What he said was perfectly true/They didn’t like what she wrote.
THAT usually follows superlatives and words such as SOME(THING), NO(THING), ANY(THING), EVERY(THING), ALL , NONE, MANY, FEW, ONLY, MUCH.
There is something (that) I don’t understand.
That’s all (that) I have done.
It’s the best musical (that) I’ve ever been to.
The only thing that matters is to find our way home.
RELATIVE ADVERBS
PLACES / WHERE (=IN WHICH/ON WHICH/ AT WHICH/ TO WHICH)TIME / WHEN
REASON / WHY (after the antecedent REASON (=FOR WHICH) )
The book is about a girl. She falls in love with the prince.
The book is about a girl. The prince falls in love with her.
WHEN THE RELATIVE PRONOUN IS THE OBJECT, IT CAN BE OMITTED IN INFORMAL ENGLISH
The ladder began to slip. It was leaning against the wall.
The ladder began to slip. I put it against the wall.
The ladder began to slip. I was standing on it.
I will never forget the day. My daughter was born then.
We have booked a room at the hotel. The Pitts are going to spend their holidays there.
The film is about a spy. His wife betrays him.
NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
They are placed after nouns which are definite already. They do not define, but add more information about the antecedent. They are not essential and can be omitted without causing confusion. They are separated from their noun by commas.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS / ADVERBS
PEOPLE / WHO/WHOM (as the object or after a preposition)THINGS / WHICH
POSSESSIVE / WHOSE
PLACES / WHERE
TIME / WHEN
NOTE:
1)WE NEVER OMIT THE RELATIVE PRONOUN IN THESE CLAUSES
2) THE ANTECEDENT IS USUALLY:
- A PROPER NOUN
- A COMMON NOUN PRECEDED BY A POSS. ADJ. OR A DEMONSTRATIVE DETERMINER(THIS/THAT/THESE/THOSE)
- A QUANTIFIER + OF + WHOM (PEOPLE)/WHICH (THING)
Ken’s mother has just passed her driving test. She is 79.
She introduced me to her husband. I hadn’t met him before.
That block cost $5 million to build. It has been empty for years.
Grass is always green in England. Cows and horses love it.
We have booked a room at the Ritz. The Pitts are spending their weekend there.
The Morris live in Bristol. We went on holiday with them.
She’s studying chemistry. I know very little about it.
We went with Peter. The mechanic had repaired his car on time.
NOTE: some of… / any of…/many of…/ much of…/ none of …/ all of …/ both of…/ several of…/ all of…/ three of… + whom (people) / which (things)
His house was full of boys. Ten of them were his own grand children.
She bought a lot of dresses. Her mother liked only a few of them.
CONNECTIVE RELATIVE CLAUSES
They do not describe their nouns but continue the story. They are usually placed after the object of the main verb. Commas are used as with non-defining relative clauses.
The pronouns are: WHO, WHOM, WHOSE and WHICH. WHICH can stand for the whole clause.
He drank beer. It made him fat.
Kate offered to help me. This was very kind of her.
There was a lot of snow. This made driving dangerous.