A relative clause is one that’s connected to the main clause of the sentence by a word such as whowhomwhichthat, or whose.

Some sentences have just one clause:

He shouted at the computer.

But some have two or more clauses:

MAIN CLAUSE                          SECOND CLAUSE

He shouted at the computer that had just stopped working.

We call the second clause a relative clause. Relative clauses give us more information about the person or thing in the main clause.

! Look at the following sentences:

Mark was the dancer. He danced with the Royal Ballet.

You can put the two sentences together by making the second sentence a relative clause, and adding who:

Mark was the dancer who danced with the Royal Ballet.

⃰  We often use relative clauses to add information after a noun:

He was a Czech writer who/ that wrote about education.

Note: a) To add information about people, use who or that (that is less common and slightly less formal)

           b) To add information about things, use that or which.  

           c) To add information about times, use that or when.

           d) To add information about possessions, use whose.

          e) To add information about places, use where.

There are two types of relative clause:

A. restrictive (or defining) relative clauses

A restrictive relative clause provides essential information about the noun to which it refers. It cannot be left out of the sentence without affecting the meaning. The highlighted section of the first sentence above is a restrictive relative clause. If it was left out, the sentence would not make sense:

It reminded him of the house.

[which house?]It reminded him of the house that he used to live in.

B. non-restrictive (or non-defining) relative clauses.

A non-restrictive relative clause provides information that can be left out without affecting the meaning or structure of the sentence. The highlighted section of the second sentence above is a non-restrictive relative clause. If it was left out, the sentence would still make perfect sense:

The items, which are believed to be family heirlooms, included a grandfather clock worth around £3,000.The items included a grandfather clock worth around £3,000.

Note: You do not need to put a comma before restrictive relative clauses. On the other hand, non-restrictive relative clauses should be separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma or commas.

let's eat grandma

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Let’s practise! :) 

1. Put the correct pronoun (that, which, who, whose, when or where) in the gaps in the following sentences:

a)      He’s the man ………………………  won the lottery.

b)      That’s the dog ……………………… chased me in the park.

c)      Shall we buy the sofa ……………………… we saw in the window yesterday?

d)      The village ……………………… Alan lived is in Normandy.

e)      Everybody celebrated that day ……………………… the agreement was signed.

f)       The café ……………………… has Internet access is on George Street.

2. Complete the sentences with relative clauses. The first one is done for you.

a)      Drivers ……who drive too slowly….. are very annoying.

b)      He wanted to wear the jacket …………………………. .

c)      I can still remember the photograph ……………………… .

d)      I don’t like people ………………………… .

e)      I like food ………………………….. .

f)       Last week I met someone ………………………..

Autor: Ana-Maria Hănţoiu