Defining Relative Clauses

Defining Relative Clauses

Why do we use them_

They give essential information about a noun.

They invented a vaccine. The vaccine helps with the common cold. That vaccine would be implemented next year.

Who and Which

We use who for a person and which for a thing. We can use that to replace who or which.

• This is the presentation which/that we are going to study today.
• Your own examples...

Open Ended

Can you give me your own example of relative clauses using who/which/that?

When who/which/ that replace the object of the sentence, we can omit the relative pronoun.

• You are listening to the teacher (= the teacher, in this case, is the object)
• What is the teacher (who/that) saying?

Open Ended

Provide your own examples when a relative pronoun is omitted. Be creative! add a lot of context if you need!

A couple more rules...

where describes a place: There is a new mall in town where you can buy new clothes.

Open Ended

Can you give us your own example with where?

Whose describe possession The man whose house was on fire is my cousin

Open Ended

Can you give us your own examples with whose?

• When describes times (year / day / time)
• These days when I can sleep and rest seem to never come

Open Ended

Can you give us your own example with when?

Non-defining relative clauses

How are they different?

Non-defining relative clauses

They are non necessary for the sentence to make sense. They just give extra information about the noun. They always have a comma before, and another comma or a full stop after.

• My new cat, who is a tabby, is just 3 months old.

Avoid the following with non-defining relative clauses:

• We cannot use that in a non-defining relative clause
• We never omit a relative pronoun in a non-defining relative clause.

Open Ended

Can you give us your own examples?

Open Ended

Can you give us your own examples with whose?