1. RELATIVE CLAUSES:
TENTH GRADE

2. We use relative clauses to add
information about the subject or object
of a sentence.
Relative clauses are introduced with
words like: “who”, “that”, “which”,
“where”, “when” and “whose”

3. We use “who” or “that” to people.
He’s the man who/that wrote the article.

4. We use “which” or “that” to refer to
things.
The newspaper which / that gives the best news is The Daily News.

5. We use “where” to refer to places.
That’s the building where my sister works.

6. We use “when” for time.
1988 was the year when I got married.

7. We use “whose” to refer to possession.
She’s the woman whose house got
destroyed in the flood.

8. A defining relative clause gives
essential information about the thing or
person we are talking about. In this
case we do not use a comma.
The man who works in this office is very
intelligent.
(= I’m talking about the only man who works in this office)

9. A non-defining relative clause gives
information that is simply additional
about the thing or person we are talking
about. The extra information is between
commas.
The man, who works
in this office, is very
intelligent.
(= I’m talking about
an intelligent man
and adding the non-
essential information
that he works in this office.)

10. LET’S EXERCISE.

11. Change the following sentences.
I gave my wife a fur coat for her birthday.
This pleased her a lot.
_______________________________________________.
2. I decided not to travel that day.
This was extremely lucky because the
train crashed.
3. He passed all his examinations. This
made his parents very proud of him.
4. He tried to explain his extraordinary
behaviour. This made everybody laugh.

12. 5. He refused to speak to her. This made her
very angry.
_________________________________________________.
6. He promised to lend me the money. That is
why I was profoundly thankful.
7. Joan wouldn’t let her children go to the
cinema. This didn’t surprise me at all
considering the film that was on.
8. They have decided to stay at home. This,
I think, is the wisest course.
9. She told them they were all fools. They
replied to this with angry cries.
________________________________________________.

13. 10. My neighbour is very friendly. He is a doctor. (who)
________________________________________________.
11. Our house is by the sea. It is 200 years old. (which)
12. Jack is very popular. His friends call him Jacko. (whose)
13. Mandy loves animals. She wants to be a vet. (who)
14. Dan Brown’s last book was very good. I really enjoyed it. (which)

14. 15. Bulgaria is a beautiful country. I went there last summer.
________________________________________________.
16. Her book was published last year. It became a best seller. (which)
17. This is Mr. Smith. His son Bill plays in our team. (whose)
18. This is the bank. We borrow money from it. (which)
19. Jack’s car has broken down. He had to take a bus. (whose)