By the end of this lesson,

you’ll be able to:

1 Identify the words used with relative clauses.

2 Be able to identify a relative clause.

Create your own sentences that

3
contain relative clauses.
 Quick check! Can you
remember what a clause is?
A clause is a group of words that contain a subject
and verb (predicate).

There are two types of clauses.

Independent clause: Dependent clause:

“I went to the store.” “When I went to the store,”

In this sentence, the thought is In this sentence, we need more
complete. information to complete the
sentence.

For this lesson, you don’t need to worry about the definitions of
clauses. Just make sure you recognise the grammar pattern.
 What is a relative clause?

1 Relative clauses are a type of dependent clause.

2 They can never stand on their own.

They are used to give extra information

3
about the noun in the main clause.
 How can I recognise
a relative clause?
Look for these words in a sentence! Pay attention to what
information follows these words.

who

whom where

whose when

which why

that

These are relative pronouns and relative adverbs.

 Read the sentences.

Identify the main clause noun, and the relative pronoun/adverb

(wh- words).

nouns relative pronoun/adverb

1 The woman who lives next door is a close friend.

2 The movie that I watched last night was quite boring.

3 The student who won the competition received a prize.

 Which sentences have
a relative clause?
Find the nouns and relative pronouns/adverbs to help you.

Who is that?

My friend, who is a ballerina, is performing on Friday.

Which house is for sale?

The house, which is painted blue, is for sale.

When I arrived, I was angry.

The day when I flew to Singapore was the day of the storm.

The wh- words need to add information to

the main nouns to be a relative clause.
 Can you spot the relative clause?

1 The book that I borrowed

borrowed from
fromthe
thelibrary
libraryisisdue
duetomorrow.
tomorrow.

2 The woman who lives

lives next
next door
door isis aa doctor.
doctor.

3 The girl whose birthday

birthday is
is today
todayisis my
my best
best friend.
friend.

4 The movie which we watched

watched last
last night
night was
was intriguing.
intriguing.

5 The city where

where I grew
grew up
up is
is known
known for
for its
its beautiful
beautiful parks.
parks.

Which words introduce these clauses?

who whose which that where

 Can you spot the relative clause?

1 The woman whom I met at the party

party is
is aa famous
famous scientist.
scientist.

The reason why she resigned

resigned from
from her
herjob
jobwas
wasnever
never
2
discussed.

3 The day when we met was in the summer.

Do these sentences make

Which words introduce these clauses? sense without the
relative clauses? Which
whom why when ones don’t?
 Match the sentence
to its relative clause.
The book ….. was who scored the
captivating. highest marks

The student .....

that my dad drives
received a scholarship.

The car ….. is a hybrid. that I read last night

The movie ….. is now

that won an Oscar
online.
 Match the sentence
to its relative clause.
The dog ….. keeps my
when I was on vacation
neighbours up at night.

My friend ….. is really whom I admire

supportive.

The time ….. was the that barks loudly

happiest of my life.

The artist ….. is selling

who helped me out
new artwork.
 Match the sentence
to its relative clause.
The restaurant ….. is
who helped us
always busy.

The jacket ….. is too that serves Italian

small. cuisine

The man ….. was that I bought for

wearing a uniform. the party

The house ….. is for

which is painted blue
sale.
 We can also specify amounts.

We can also modify this by using phrases such as

“some of which” and “many of which”.

1 I bought several books, some of which were mysteries.

They planted flowers in their garden, many of which

2
successfully bloomed.

He ordered many items online, some of which were items

3
for his partner.

See how this changes the This isn’t extremely common in

sentence structure? These are spoken English, but is very useful
still relative clauses. for essay writing!
 Practise adding “some of which”
and make sentences.

1 He makes shoes,
shoes. Some
some of
shoes
which
are are
sneakers.
sneakers.

2 She owns several properties,

properties. Some
some of
arewhich
luxuryare
homes.
luxury homes.

The horses ran across the field,

field. Some
some of
horses
which
were
were
faster
faster
3
than others.

4 He wore many necklaces,

necklaces. Some
some of
were
which
beaded.
were beaded.
 Your turn! Look at the sentences.
Think up a relative clause.

1 The house … is my aunt’s.

2 The cat … is now sleeping.

3 My friend … will be at the event.

4 My last job … was quite difficult.

5 The student … was top of the class.

 Your turn! Look at the sentences.
Think up a relative clause.

6 The cashier … wasn’t very polite.

7 My friend … isn’t speaking to me.

8 The car … is my dad’s.

9 The book … was very long.

10 The movie … was really fascinating.