Yara EnglishGrade 12 — Sunrise
All topics
Grammar — Study

Relative Clauses (who, which, that, where, when)

Defining vs non-defining clauses, when relative pronouns can be the object, replaceable pronouns.

Practice (3)

Relative clauses give us more information about a noun. The relative pronoun (who, which, that, where, when) joins the clauses together.

The relative pronouns

who → people. which → things. that → people OR things (defining only). where → places. when → times. whose → possession.

Defining vs non-defining

Defining clauses give essential information (no commas). Non-defining clauses add extra information (with commas) — they can be removed without losing the basic meaning.

  • Defining: The engineer that designed the bridge is highly respected.
  • Non-defining: Paris, which is known as the City of Light, is beautiful.
Tip — In non-defining clauses, 'which' CANNOT be replaced by 'that'. The commas mean the information is extra.

When is the pronoun the object?

If you can remove the pronoun and the sentence still works, it's the object.

  • She ate the cake (that) Marry baked. ← 'that' is the object — it can be removed.
  • The receptionist who answers phone calls. ← 'who' is the subject — cannot remove.

where vs when vs why

'It is better to live in a country where the language is spoken.' (place → where)

The 'Paris' question

(Paris, which is known as the City of Light, is a beautiful place to visit.) — Both A and B are true about the underlined part: (A) 'which' cannot be replaced by 'that' AND (B) extra information is added about Paris. The commas signal it is non-defining.