Grammar unit 5
Relative clauses
Information about relative clauses
Relative clauses give information about people or things which come in front of the relative clause.
Relative clauses usually begin with a relative pronoun.
I saw a man. (What man?)
I saw a man who looked just like a sailor.
Use
To give information about people, we use the relative pronoun who or that.
A serial murderer is a person who/that kills several people.
To give information about things, we use the relative pronoun which or that.
Jack used a knife which/that had a long, sharp blade.
Dropping the relative pronoun
When the relative clause already has a subject, we can drop the relative pronoun. When the relative
pronoun is the subject, we can’t drop it.
Mary Kelly was a young girl everyone loved very much.
He saw a man who was talking to Catherine.
Non-defining relative clauses
A non-defining relative clause gives extra, non-essential information. Even if we leave it out, the
whole sentence is still clear. You separate a non-defining relative clause from the rest of the sentence
with a comma before (and after) it.
Jack committed his crimes in London, (which is the capital of England.)
!In non-defining relative clauses we can’t use the relative pronoun that.
Polly Nichols, who (that) was a prostitute, was murdered in 1888.
!In non-defining relative clauses, we can’t drop the relative pronoun.
Buck’s Row, which Londoners now call Durward Street, was the scene of
the first murder.
Other relative clauses
Relative clauses with whose
We use the relative pronoun whose to express possession. In Dutch, we would use ‘van wie’, ‘wiens’
of ‘waarvan’ in those cases.
Catherine Eddowes was the victim whose kidney was removed by the
Ripper.
Relative clauses with when, where and why
We can use where or when instead of that to give information about a location or a time.
We don’t know the exact moment when Mary Kelly was killed.
We can also use why instead of that after the word reason.
The motive for a crime is the reason why someone commits a crime.
Relative clauses with prepositions
We usually put prepositions at the end of the relative clause.
! Did you see the man that Mary Kelly was talking to?
You can’t combine where with a preposition.
This is the room where the whole family lived. = This is the room that the
whole family lived in.
Relative clauses that give more information about an entire sentence
To comment on a complete sentence, we use the pronoun which, not what.
No one saw or heard anything, which is incredible.
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Relative clauses
Information about relative clauses
Relative clauses give information about people or things which come in front of the relative clause.
Relative clauses usually begin with a relative pronoun.
I saw a man. (What man?)
I saw a man who looked just like a sailor.
Use
To give information about people, we use the relative pronoun who or that.
A serial murderer is a person who/that kills several people.
To give information about things, we use the relative pronoun which or that.
Jack used a knife which/that had a long, sharp blade.
Dropping the relative pronoun
When the relative clause already has a subject, we can drop the relative pronoun. When the relative
pronoun is the subject, we can’t drop it.
Mary Kelly was a young girl everyone loved very much.
He saw a man who was talking to Catherine.
Non-defining relative clauses
A non-defining relative clause gives extra, non-essential information. Even if we leave it out, the
whole sentence is still clear. You separate a non-defining relative clause from the rest of the sentence
with a comma before (and after) it.
Jack committed his crimes in London, (which is the capital of England.)
!In non-defining relative clauses we can’t use the relative pronoun that.
Polly Nichols, who (that) was a prostitute, was murdered in 1888.
!In non-defining relative clauses, we can’t drop the relative pronoun.
Buck’s Row, which Londoners now call Durward Street, was the scene of
the first murder.
Other relative clauses
Relative clauses with whose
We use the relative pronoun whose to express possession. In Dutch, we would use ‘van wie’, ‘wiens’
of ‘waarvan’ in those cases.
Catherine Eddowes was the victim whose kidney was removed by the
Ripper.
Relative clauses with when, where and why
We can use where or when instead of that to give information about a location or a time.
We don’t know the exact moment when Mary Kelly was killed.
We can also use why instead of that after the word reason.
The motive for a crime is the reason why someone commits a crime.
Relative clauses with prepositions
We usually put prepositions at the end of the relative clause.
! Did you see the man that Mary Kelly was talking to?
You can’t combine where with a preposition.
This is the room where the whole family lived. = This is the room that the
whole family lived in.
Relative clauses that give more information about an entire sentence
To comment on a complete sentence, we use the pronoun which, not what.
No one saw or heard anything, which is incredible.
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