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Understanding Relative Clauses Explained

A relative clause is a dependent clause that provides additional information about a noun, functioning like a mini-adjective, and begins with relative pronouns or adverbs. There are two types: Defining Relative Clauses, which are essential to the sentence's meaning, and Non-Defining Relative Clauses, which add extra information but can be removed without losing clarity. Key characteristics include the use of commas for non-defining clauses and the ability to omit relative pronouns in defining clauses when they are the object.

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7 views3 pages

Understanding Relative Clauses Explained

A relative clause is a dependent clause that provides additional information about a noun, functioning like a mini-adjective, and begins with relative pronouns or adverbs. There are two types: Defining Relative Clauses, which are essential to the sentence's meaning, and Non-Defining Relative Clauses, which add extra information but can be removed without losing clarity. Key characteristics include the use of commas for non-defining clauses and the ability to omit relative pronouns in defining clauses when they are the object.

Uploaded by

fazliddin051723
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© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

What is a Relative Clause?

A relative clause is a type of dependent clause that gives more information


about a noun in the main clause. It functions like a mini-adjective. It usually
begins with a relative pronoun: who, whom, whose, which, that, or a
relative adverb like where, when, why.

There are two main types:

1. Defining Relative Clauses (also called Restrictive)


2. Non-Defining Relative Clauses (also called Non-Restrictive)

1. Defining Relative Clauses


These clauses are essential to the meaning of the sentence. They
define which specific person or thing we are talking about. If you remove a
defining clause, the sentence loses its core meaning.

 The man who lives next door is a doctor.


o Without the clause: "The man is a doctor." Which man? We don't
know. The clause is essential.

Key Characteristics:

 No commas are used to separate them from the main clause.


 The relative pronoun can often be omitted if it is the object of the
clause (more on this below).

Relative Pronouns in Defining Clauses:

For Possessi Reaso


For Things Place Time
People on n

who / which / wher whe


whose why
that that e n
Examples:

 People (Subject): The woman who/that called me is my boss.


("who/that" is the subject of the verb called)
 People (Object): The man (who/whom/that) I met yesterday was
very kind. ("who/whom/that" is the object of the verb met. You can
omit it!)
 Things (Subject): The phone which/that charges wirelessly is
expensive.
 Things (Object): The book (which/that) you recommended was
great. (You can omit the pronoun!)
 Possession: That's the artist whose painting sold for millions.
 Place: This is the park where we first met.
 Time: I'll always remember the day when we graduated.
 Reason: Tell me the reason why you are late.

Omitting the Relative Pronoun:


This is a very important rule. You can only omit the pronoun when it is
the object of the verb in the relative clause.

 ✅ Correct: The movie (that) we watched was scary. ("that" is the


object of watched – we watched what? we watched the movie)
 ❌ Incorrect: The man that lives there is my uncle. (You cannot
omit "that" because it is the subject of the verb lives)

2. Non-Defining Relative Clauses


These clauses give extra, non-essential information about the noun. If
you remove them, the sentence still makes sense and you still know which
person or thing is being talked about.

 My boss, who is a great cook, invited us for dinner.


o Without the clause: "My boss invited us for dinner." The sentence
is still perfectly clear. The clause just adds bonus information.

Key Characteristics:

 They are always separated by commas (or dashes or


parentheses).
 You cannot use that – you must use who or which.
 You cannot omit the relative pronoun.
Examples:

 People: Mr. Jones, who lives next door, is a doctor. (Not that)
 Things: My car, which I bought last year, is very efficient. (Not that,
and you cannot omit which)
 Possession: Shakespeare, whose plays are famous worldwide, was
born in Stratford-upon-Avon.
 Place: We visited Paris, where the Eiffel Tower is located.

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