Subject: English2 Code: 31102

Name __________________________________________________ Class _____ No _____

Relative Clause
A relative clause is one kind of dependent clause. It is sometimes called an “adjective clause” because it
functions like an adjective—it gives more information about a noun. A relative clause always begins with a
“relative pronoun,” which substitutes for a noun, a noun phrase, or a pronoun when sentences are combined.
We can use relative clauses to join two English sentences, or to give more information about something.
Example: I bought a new car. It is very fast.
→ I bought a new car which is very fast.
The relative pronouns are:
Pronouns Usage Examples

who replace the subject pronoun I, he, This is the man who broke the window.
she, we and they
(He broke the window - who replaces he)

whom replace the object pronouns me, The lady whom they caught was sent to prison.
her, him, us and them
(They caught her – whom replaces her)

whose show possession or relationship. I have a friend whose uncle drives a taxi.
(whose refers back to friend)

that Clauses that begin with that are The lamp that was in the room was broken.
almost always restrictive clauses
(The clause that was in the room identifies the lamp.)

which used for things and animals This is the cake which Mary made.
I like the puppy which is jumping at the kitchen.

when refers to time The day when the concert takes place is Saturday.
The summer when I graduated from university was hot.

where refers to places This is the house where my son was born.

why refers to reason I’d like to know the reason why you’re so late.
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Exercise 1. Choose one of the following relative pronouns who, whom, whose, which,
when, where or why.
1. Here is the car ___________
which she bought for her son.
2. The woman __________
who is standing at the door is his sister.
3. Students ___________ grades are low can drop one test score.
4. I live in the town __________ I study.
5. Do you know the reason ___________ the market is closed today.
6. She’s the woman ___________ I met in Greece.
7. Christmas Day is a day __________ people are happy.
8. I know someone ___________ ring was found after thirty years.
9. A person __________ wins the lottery every year is lucky.
10. We often had a picnic in a wood __________ was full of wild flowers.
11. My friends found the wood ___________ I used to go.
12. This is the man __________ I saw stealing.
13. I always wear the dress __________ my mother made.
14. Students __________ study hard will do well in my class.
15. He knows an old man __________ house was robbed last night.
16. I don’t know __________ he didn’t come.
17. The witnesses __________ I interviewed gave conflicting evidence.
18. Never go to a doctor __________ office plants have died.
19. The city __________ my aunt lives is beautiful.
20. Grandma remembers a time __________ radio shows were popular.
22. Neil Armstrong was the first person __________ walked on the moon.
23. I know a store __________ we can buy the phone cheaper.
24. He once had a girlfriend __________ he loved so much.
25. I talked to a parent __________ child is very ill.
26. Do you mind showing me the place __________ you live?
27. Do you mind showing me the place __________ you live in?
28. The hour __________ the parade begins is 12:30 p.m.
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Defining and Non-defining
1. A defining relative clause tells which noun we are talking about:
• I like the woman who lives next door.
(If I don't say 'who lives next door', then we don't know which woman I mean).
2. A non-defining relative clause gives us extra information about something. We don't need this
information to understand the sentence.
• I live in London, which has some fantastic parks.
(Everybody knows where London is, so 'which has some fantastic parks' is extra information).
We don't use 'that' in non-defining relative clauses, so we need to use 'which' if the pronoun refers to a
thing, and 'who' if it refers to a person.
**Clause comes after the subject
• My boss, who is very nice, lives in Manchester.
• My sister, who I live with, knows a lot about cars.
• My bicycle, which I've had for more than ten years, is falling apart.
• My mother's house, which I grew up in, is very small.
**Clause comes after the object
• Yesterday I called our friend Julie, who lives in New York.
• The photographer called to the Queen, who looked annoyed.
• Last week I bought a new computer, which I don't like now.
• I really love the new Chinese restaurant, which we went to last night.

Exercise2. Relative clauses - defining or non-defining?

1. I have three brothers.
a. My brother who lives in Sidney came to see me last month.
O
b. My brother, who lives in Sidney, came to see me last month.
2. I have one sister.
a. My sister who is 25 years old spent her holiday in France.
ob. My sister, who is 25 years old, spent her holiday in France.
X
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3. Bob's mum has lost her keys.
a. Bob's mum who is a musician has lost her car keys.
b. Bob's mum, who is a musician, has lost her car keys.
Insider X
O
4. My friend Jane moved to Canada.
a. My friend Jane whose husband is Canadian moved to Canada last week.
b. My friend Jane, whose husband is Canadian, moved to Canada last week.
O
5. I am a shoe fanatic.
a. The shoes which I bought yesterday are very comfortable.
b. The shoes, which I bought yesterday, are very comfortable.
6. Mr. Robinson is very famous.
a. Mr. Robinson whom I met at the trade fair is a famous inventor.
b. Mr. Robinson, whom I met at the trade fair, is a famous inventor.
7. Tamara has two cats. Both of them are black.
a. Tamara's two cats which can play outside are black.
b. Tamara's two cats, which can play outside, are black.
O
8. Kevin has four cats. Two of them are black.
a. Kevin's two cats which are black can play outside.
b. Kevin's two cats, which are black, can play outside.
9. We are on holiday. Yesterday we visited a church.
a. The church which we visited yesterday is very old.
b. The church, which we visited yesterday, is very old.
10. We are on holiday. Yesterday we visited a church.
a. St. Mary's Church which we visited yesterday is very old.
b. St. Mary's Church, which we visited yesterday, is very old.
O
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Exercise 3. Choose the correct relative pronoun for the following defining and non-defining relative clauses.
1. This is the place ______ I saw him the last time.
Oa. where b. which c. that
2. That's the man ______ daughter has won the lottery.
a. which b. who Oc. whose
3. The painting, ______ was finished in 1850, is one of the most representative works of that time.
O O
a. which
O b. where c. thatX
4. Can you give me the number of the plumber ______ repaired your shower?
a. whose O b. that c. which
5. My sister,O______ is now living in New York,Ohas just had a baby.
Oa. who b. that X c. whose
6. The bar in Barcelona _______ I met my wife in is still there.
a. which b. where c. whose
O
7. Joe was carrying a gun,0 ______ was fortunate, because it saved our lives.
O
a. where L
b. that c. which
X O
8. You should write a thank you email to the lady ______ assisted you the night of the accident.
a. whose b. whom Oc. that
9. I'll always remember the day ______ we met.
a. where b. when c. which
10. He took us into his house and gave us food, _______ was really nice of him.
Oa. which b. thatX c. when
11. William Colgate, ________ name is on toothpaste tubes all around the world, left home because the
family was very poor.
a. whose
O b. who c. whom
12. My brother, ________ is a manager, earns big money.
a. that O b. who c. whose
13. Can you see the car _______ door is scratched?
a. which b. that c. whose

ow ni suo
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Relative clauses: Leaving out the relative pronoun
We leave out the relative pronoun (who/which/that) if it is not the subject in the sentence.
If there is a verb after the relative pronoun who/which/that, do not leave out the relative pronoun.
Examples:

1st part of the sentence 2nd part of the sentence

This is the boy who was at the party yesterday.

Subject Verb Rest Subject Verb Rest

***who is subject in the sentence, do not leave it out.

1st part of the sentence Pronoun 2nd part of the sentence

This is the boy who I met at the party yesterday.

This is the boy can be left out I met at the party yesterday.

Subject Verb Rest Subject Verb Rest

*** who is not subject in the sentence, it can be left out.

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Exercise 4. Decide whether the relative pronoun is a subject pronoun or an object pronoun.
1. Do you know the girl who SI danced
u with? (___________)
object
T with me?
2. Do you know the girl who danced (___________)
subject
3. The apples that are lying on the table are bad (___________)
subject
4. The apples that we bought in the shop are bad. (___________)
object
5. We will stay at a hotel which is not far from the beach. (___________)
6. We will stay at a hotel which my friend has recommended to us. (___________)
7. That is a museum which I like very much. (___________)
8. That is a museum which lies in the heart of the town. (___________)
9. This is the man who Barbara visited in Scotland. (___________)
10. This is the man who lives in Scotland. (___________)
Exercise 5. Decide whether the relative pronouns must be used ( ) or not ( ).
1. That was the place where I'd seen you.X
non definingNINJA
a
2. My father, whom I helped to install his computer, always forgets his password.
3. It was raining again. The rain always reminded her of the city where they went for their honeymoon.X
4. Maxine was furious. "Tell that brother of yours, who I never want to see again, that it's over, finished!" r
o o
5. Tell me the song which makes you feel happiest.
objectnon de
finding
6. Lucy, who I haven't seen for ages, rang me last night. v
o o
object anaito
7. Which is the color that you would like for the kitchen?
8. The man fell over in the street and it was his own sister who found him there.
Exercise 6. Complete the sentences with relative clauses in simple present. Use who or which.
1. This is the man (work at the station) ___________________________.
who works at the station
whichgrows in thegarden is an apple tree.
2. The tree (grow in the garden) __________________________
3. The man (go jogging) ___________________________
who goes jogging every Friday is my neighbor.
which live inAfrica
4. The elephants (live in Africa) ___________________________ have big ears.
5. Turn left at the yellow house (be opposite) __________________________ the petrol station.
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Exercise 7. Combine the sentences with relative clauses. (Decide whether to use commas or not.)
that
1. A monk is a man. TheXman has devoted his life to God.

A monk is a man who has devoted his life to God

________________________________________________________________________.
2. I have one black cat. His name is Blacky.
I have one black cat whose name is Blacky
________________________________________________________________________.
3. A herbivore is an animal. TheXwhich
animal feeds upon vegetation.
tds
thee
_________________________________________________________________________.
A herbivore is an animalwhgich uponvegetation
4. Carol plays the piano brilliantly. She is only 9 years old.
whoisonly 9 yearsold plays the piano brilliantly
_________________________________________________________________________.
Carol
5. Sydney is the largest Australian city. It is not the capital of Australia.
which isn't thecapital of Australia is thelargestAustraliancity
_________________________________________________________________________.
Sydney

Exercise 8. Combine the sentences with contact clauses.

1. We ordered a book.
0 It was very expensive.
_________________________________________________________________________.
Thebookwhich we wasveryexpensive
2. You are sitting on a bench. The paint on the bench is still wet.
0
_________________________________________________________________________.
Thebench which you are sitting
3. The photographer could not develop the pictures. I had taken them in Australia.
_________________________________________________________________________.
The photographer couldnotdevelopthe pictures I hadtaken in Australia
4. One of the bins smells awful. You haven’t emptied the bin for 3 weeks.
_________________________________________________________________________.
thebinshaven'temptied for 3 weekssmellsawful
5. They are singing a song. I don’t know the song.
____________________________________________________________________.
They are singing thesong I don'tknow
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Exercise 9. Combine the following pairs of sentences using a relative pronoun.
1. The parcel reached me this morning. My brother sent it.
___________________________________________________________________________.
TheparcelwhichIthat my brothersentreachedmethismorning
2. The woman is my English teacher. I was talking to her just now.
___________________________________________________________________________.
The woman whomIthatIwho I was talkingtojustnowismyEnglishteacher
___________________________________________________________________________.
___________________________________________________________________________.
3. San Francisco is a city. You can experience the four seasons in San Francisco.
___________________________________________________________________________.
___________________________________________________________________________.
San francisco is a city which you can experiencethefourseason
4. This is the house. Jack built it.
is thehousewhich that Jackbuilt
___________________________________________________________________________.
This
5. The boy didn’t do his homework. The teacher punished him.
____________________________________________________________________________.
The boy who the teacher punisheddidn'tdohishomework
6. Eight o’clock is the time. I’ll call you then.
____________________________________________________________________________.
Eight o'clock is the time when I will callyou
____________________________________________________________________________.
Eight o'clock is the timethat I will callyou
7. He tells lies. He deserves to be punished.
___________________________________________________________________________.
He whotellsliesdeservestobepunished
8. Sheila is away from home a lot. Her job involves a lot of travelling.
___________________________________________________________________________.
Sheila whose
jobinvolves a lotoftravelling isawayfromhome
9. The new stadium will be opened next month. It can hold 90,000 people.
___________________________________________________________________________.
The newstadiumwhich can hold 90,000peoplewillbeopenednextmonth
10. He knows an old man. His house was robbed last night.
___________________________________________________________________________.
He whose housewasrobbedlastnight knows an oldman
He knows an old man whose house was robbed lastnight
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11. I was invited by the professor. I met him at the conference.
I was invitedbytheprofessor who I metat the conference
___________________________________________________________________________.
12. That was the place. I'd seen you there.
was theplace where I'd seen you
___________________________________________________________________________.
That
13. Once upon a time there lived a giant. The giant was very powerful and cruel.
there lived a giant whoAhat was
___________________________________________________________________________.
Once upon a time very powerful
14. He liked the people. He lived with them.
___________________________________________________________________________.
He liked thepeople whomIthat he lived with
___________________________________________________________________________.
15. The tree under was the largest and oldest in the park. They had their picnic under the tree.
___________________________________________________________________________.
The treewhichtheyhadtheirpicnicunderwasthelargestandoldestinthepark
___________________________________________________________________________.
that
14. She’s the friend. Her brother went to boarding school.
___________________________________________________________________________.
she isthefriend whose brotherwentto boardingschool
15. The jungle was full of strange and unusual animals. The tribe lived live in the jungle.
___________________________________________________________________________.
The jungle which thetribelivedlivein wasfullofstrangeandunusualanimal
___________________________________________________________________________.
where
___________________________________________________________________________.
that
16. The promise had to be honored. We were bound by the promise.
___________________________________________________________________________.
The promise which we wereboundhadtobehonored
___________________________________________________________________________.
that
17. That's the year. We got married that year.
___________________________________________________________________________.
The yearwhich wegot married isthat
18. Bring me the file. The file is on the table.
___________________________________________________________________________.
Bring methefilewhich is onthetable
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