Relative clauses: Defining and non-defining (part one)

-A clause is a part of a sentence. A relative clause tells us which person

or thing (or what kind of person or thing) the speaker means:
Eg: -The woman who Lives next door . . . ('who lives next door' tells us
which woman)
-People who live in the country . . . ('who live in the country' tells us what
kind of people)
We use who in a relative clause when we are talking about people (not
things):
the woman- she lives next door- is a doctor
~ The woman who lives next door is a doctor.
we know a lot of people - they live in the country
~ We know a lot of people who live in the country.

Exercises
In this exercise you have to explain what some words mean. Choose the
right meaning from the box and then write a sentence with who. Use a
dictionary if necessary.

- steals from a shop

- designs buildings
- doesn’t believe in god
he/she - is not brave
- buys something from a shop
- pays rent to live in a house or apartment
- breaks into a house to steal things
- expects the worst to happen

1 (an architect) An architect is someone who designs buildings.

2 (a burglar) A burglar is someone who breaks into a house to steal things.
3 (a customer) a customer is someone who buys something from a shop.
4 (a shoplifter) a shop lifter is someone who steals from a shop.
5 (a coward) a coward is someone who is not brave.
6 (an atheist) an atheist is someone who doesn’t believe in god.
7 (a pessimist) a pessimist is someone who expects the worst to happen.
8 (a tenant) a tenant is someone who pays rent to live in a house or apartment.

Make one sentence from two. Use who/that/which.

1 A girl was injured in the accident. She is now in hospital.

The girl who was injured in the accident is now in hospital..
2 A waitress served us. She was impolite and impatient.
The waitress who served us was impolite and impatient.
3 A building was destroyed in the fire. lt has now been rebuilt.
The building which was destroyed in the fire has now been rebuilt.
4 Some people were arrested. They have now been released.
The people who were arrested have now been released.
5 A bus goes to the airport. lt runs every half hour.
The bus that/which goes to the airport runs every half an hour.

Complete the sentences. Choose from the box and make a relative clause.

invented the telephone

runs away from home
stole my wallet
were hanging on the wall
makes furniture
gives you the meaning of words
can support Life
cannot be explained

1 Helen works for a company that makes furniture.

2 The book is about a girl who runs away from home.
3 What happened to the pictures that/which were hanging on the wall?
4 A mystery is something that cannot be explained.
5 The police have arrested the man who stole my wallet.
6 A dictionary is a book that/which gives you the meaning of words.
7 Alexander Bell was the man who invented the telephone.
8 lt seems that Earth is the only planet that can support life.

Are these sentences right or wrong? Correct them where necessary.

1 I don't like stories who have unhappy endings. Stories that/which have
2 What was the name of the person who phoned? OK
3 Where's the nearest shop who sells bread? that/which sells..
4 The driver which caused the accident was fined £500. who caused
5 Do you know the person that took these pictures?OK also who took
6 We live in a world what is changing all the time that/which is changing
7 Dan said some things about me that were not t rue OK also which were not
true
8 What was the name of the horse it won the race? that/which won
Relative clauses: Defining and non-defining (part two)

Whose

We use whose in relative clauses instead of his/her/their:

Eg: we helped some people- their car had broken down
--. We helped some people whose car had broken down.

We use whose for people and things:

Eg: A widow is a woman whose husband is dead. (her husband is dead)
What's the name of the man whose car you borrowed? (you borrowed his car)
I met someone whose brother I went to school with. (I went to school with his/her
brother)
Compare who and whose:
I met a man who knows you. (he knows you)
I met a man whose sister knows you. (his sister knows you)

Whom

Whom is used when it modifies the object of the verb in the relative clause.

Eg: George is a person whom I admire very much. (I admire him)

You can also use whom with a preposition (to whom I from whom I with whom etc.):
I like the people with whom I work. (I work with them)

Where

You can use where in a relative clause to talk about a place:

Eg: The restaurant- we had lunch there -it was near the airport
I
The restaurant where we had Lunch was near the airport.
I recently went back to the town where I grew up.
(or ... the town I grew up in or .. . the town that I grew up in)
I would like to live in a place where there is plenty of sunshine.
 Unit 94
94.1-

1) I met somebody whose mother writes detective stories.

2) I met a man whose wife is an English teacher.
3) I met a woman who owns a restaurant.
4) I met somebody whose ambition is to climb Everest.
5) I met a couple who have just got married.
6) I met somebody whose parents used to work in a circus.

94.2-

1) I recently went back to the small town where I grew up.

2) Is there a shop near here where I can get some water.
3) The factory where I work is going to close down next month.
4) Do you know the name of the hotel where Sue is staying?
5) This is the park where I play football on Sundays.

94.3-

1) What’s the name of the man whose car you borrowed?

2) A cemetery is a place where people are buried.
3) A pacifist is a person who believes that all wars are wrong.
4) An orphan is a child whose parents are dead.
5) What was the name of the person to whom you spoke on the phone?
6) The place where we spent our holidays was really beautiful.
7) This school is only for children whose first language is not English.
8) The woman with whom he fell in love left him after a month.

94.4-

1) I can’t meet you on Friday. That’s the day I’m going away.
2) The reason I left my job was that the salary was very low.
3) I’ll never forget the time I got stuck in a lift.
4) Do you remember the day we first met?
5) The reason they don’t have a car is that they don’t need one.
6) 2003 was the year Amanda got married.
 Relative clauses: Defining and non-defining (part three)

I- a defining relative clause gives necessary information without

which the sentence is incomplete, i.e. the subject doesn’t tell
us what or who we are talking about.

Eg: the woman is a doctor. (we don’t know which woman we are
talking about) so a defining clause is necessary.

Notice this sentence:

The woman who lives next door from me is a doctor

“who lives next door from me” is a defining relative clause. It gives necessary
information.

II- A non-defining relative clause gives extra information.

So it’s optional. i.e, we can use it to give more information or do without
it.

, ,
Eg: Julia who lives next door from me is a doctor.
This relative clause is not necessary because we know the person we
are talking about. Her name is Julia.

Notice.
- In a defining relative clause,(example 1) there are no commas separating it from
the main clause.
- In a non defining relative clause we need commas (example 2), which means
that it is not necessary. We can remove it and say:

Julia is a doctor. This sentence is correct because we know who we are

talking about.
 Practice
I- Make one sentence from two. Use the sentence in brackets to make a
relative clause. You’ll need to use who(m)/whose /which/where.
Eg: Catherine is very friendly. (she lives next door.)
Catherine, who lives next door, is very friendly.

1) We stayed at the park hotel. (a friend of ours recommended it.)

We stayed at the park hotel
2) We often go to visit our friends in Cambridge. (it is not far from London.
We often go to visit our friends in Cambridge, which is not far from London.
3) I went to see the doctor. (she told me I needed to change my diet.)
I went to see the doctor, who told me I needed to change my diet.
4) Steven is one of my closest friends. (I’ve known him for a long time.)
Steven, who/whom I’ve known for a very long time, is one of my closest friends.
5) Lisa is away from home a lot. (her job involves a lot of travelling.)
Lisa, whose job involves a lot of travelling, is away from home a lot.
6) The new stadium will be finished next month. (it can hold 90,000 people.)
The new stadium, which can hold 90,000 people, will be finished next month.
7) Alaska is the largest state in the USA. (my brother lives there.)
My brother lives in Alaska, which is the largest state in the USA.
8) Our former Maths teacher was very kind. (I have forgotten her name.)
Our former Maths teacher, whose name I have forgotten, was very kind.

II- Read the information and complete each sentence. Use commas
where necessary.
Eg: a- There’s a woman living next door to me. She’s a doctor.
The woman who lives next door to me is a doctor.
( the relative clause is defining, so no commas are needed)
b- I’ve a brother called Ben. He lives in Hong Kong. He’s an architect.
My brother Ben, who lives in Hong Kong, is an architect.
( the relative clause is non-defining, so we need commas)

1) There was a strike at the factory. It began ten days ago. It’s now over.
The strike at the factory, which began ten days ago, is now over.
2) I was looking for a book this morning. I’ve found it now.
I’ve found the book (that/which) I was looking for this morning.
3) I’ve had my car for 15 years. It has never broken down.
My car, which I’ve had for 15 years, has never broken down.
4) A job was advertised. A lot of people applied for it. Few of them had the necessary
qualifications.
Few of the people who applied for the job had the necessary qualifications.
5) Amy has a son. She showed me a picture of him. He’s a police officer.
Amy showed me a picture of her son, who is a police officer.
6) My father is 89 years old. He can speak five languages.
 My father, who is 89 years old, can speak five languages.

III- Some of these sentences are wrong. Correct them and put in commas
where necessary. If the sentence is correct, write “OK”.

Eg: Anna told about her new job that she’s enjoying very much.
Anna told me about her new job, which she’s enjoying very much.

1) My office, which is on the second floor, is very small.

2) The office I’m using at the moment is very small. OK, can also use which/that

3) Mark’s father , who used to work in the army, now works for a TV company

4) The doctor who examined me couldn’t find anything wrong.

5) The sun, which is one of millions of stars in the universe, provides us with heat and light.

6) My brother, who lives in Canada, is very rich.