1. Relative Clauses & Relative Pronouns RELATIVE PRONOUNS

2. RELATIVE CLAUSES: USE Example:
dependent clauses
give additional information about something without starting another sentence
by combining sentences with a relative clause, your text becomes more fluent and you can avoid repeating certain words
Example:
I like working with students who want to learn something.
I downloaded a new film which is really interesting.

3. RELATIVE PRONOUNS WHO (subject) PEOPLE WHOM (object) WHICH THINGS
introduce relative clauses
relative clause tells us which person / thing the speaker means / refers to
WHO (subject) PEOPLE
WHOM (object)
WHICH THINGS
WHOSE (posession)
THAT → instead of WHO, WHOM, WHICH
WHERE
WHEN RELATIVE ADVERBS
WHY: the reason why

4. Example: They are learning relative clause. The students
The students are smart.
They are learning relative clause.
The students
who are learning relative clauses
are smart.
‘who’ is used instead of ‘they’

5. Remember: the pronoun refers to the same thing as the relative pronoun
e.g. The girl is my sister. You saw her yesterday.
A: The girl whom you saw her yesterday is my sister.
→ The girl whom you saw yesterday is my sister.

6. Relative adverbs WHY: THE REASON WHY
I didn’t get a pay rise – that was the reason why I left.
I didn’t get a pay rise – that was the reason (that) I left.
WHERE
The street where we used to play as kids is very busy now.
WHEN
He will never forget the day when he started working in that company.

7. TYPES OF RELATIVE CLAUSES
Defining relative clauses give important information to identify the person or thing we are talking about.→ We don’t use a comma.
The office equipment (which / that) we bought was very expensive.
The student (who/ that) I saw yesterday is from Spain.
Non-defining relative clauses give additional information about the person or thing we are talking about. → We use a comma.
Mr Jones, who is the CEO of the company, will retire soon.
The Smiths, who live next door, have bought a new car.

8. RELATIVE CLAUSES DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES WHO WHOM WHICH THAT
WHEN, WHERE
DEFINING vs. NON-DEFINING CLAUSES SHORT
NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
WHO
WHOM
WHICH
WHEN, WHERE

9. DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
SUBJECT
- The person who phoned me last night is my teacher. - The person that phoned me last night is my teacher.
"that" is preferable
- The car which hit me was yellow. - The car that hit me was yellow.

10. DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
OBJECT
- The person whom I phoned last night is my teacher. - The people who I phoned last night are my teachers. - The person that I phoned last night is my teacher. - The person I phoned last night is my teacher.
"whom" is correct but formal relative pronoun is optional
- The car which I drive is old. - The car that I drive is old. - The car I drive is old.
"that" is preferable to "which" relative pronoun is optional

11. DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
POSSESSIVE
- The student whose phone just rang should stand up. - Students whose parents are wealthy pay extra.
- The police are looking for the car whose driver was masked. - The police are looking for the car of which the driver was masked.
"whose" can be used with things "of which" is also possible

12. NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE
SUBJECT
- Mrs Pratt, who is very kind, is my teacher.
- The car, which was a taxi, exploded. - The cars, which were taxis, exploded.
OBJECT
- Mrs Pratt, whom I like very much, is my teacher. - Mrs Pratt, who I like very much, is my teacher.
"whom" is correct but formal "who" is common in spoken English and informal written English
- The car, which I was driving at the time, suddenly caught fire.

13. NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE
POSSESSIVE
- My brother, whose phone you just heard, is a doctor.
- The car, whose driver jumped out just before the accident, was completely destroyed. - The car, the driver of which jumped out just before the accident, was completely destroyed.
"whose" can be used with things "of which" is also possible

14. PREPOSITIONS + RELATIVE CLAUSES
FORMAL STYLE:
we usually put a preposition before the relative pronoun and we use whom instead of who
The office to which Graham took us was filled with books.
LESS FORMAL STYLE:
we usually put the preposition at the end of the relative clause
The office that Graham took us to was filled with books
More examples:
That’s the car for which I paid $2, (more formal)
That’s the car which / that I paid $2,000 for. (more usual)
That’s the car I paid $2,000 for (everyday English)

15. Review & exercises: DEFINING vs NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
15 sentences with key
more exercises

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