who, whom ,whose, which and that

English Grammar

WHO -WHOSE- WHOM - THAT - WHICH

what do we call them?

Who' - 'whose' - 'whom' - 'that' and 'which' - are relative pronouns

How do we use them?

we use them to refer to people objects and things or even ideas and sometimes to ask questions as well. these pronouns are used in order to avoid repetition but there is often confusion about the use of who, whose, whom, that, which

WHO

We use who when referring to people or when we want to know the person.
EXAMPLES:

• Who ate all the chocolates?

• Who called the police?

• The man who witnessed the accident called the police.

• The person who answered the phone was very helpful.

WHICH

We use which to refer to a thing or an idea, and to ask about choices.
EXAMPLES:

• My car, which is 20 years old, isn't worth much.

• The castle, which was built in the 18th century, is a local attraction.

• Which size would you like: small, medium or large?

• Which would you prefer: red or white?

WHOSE

 Whose refers to ownership.
EXAMPLES:

• Whose dictionary is this?

• I don't know whose coat this is.

• There's the girl whose car was stolen.

• The student whose article was published received a prize.

WHOM

 When who is the object of a verb, whom can be used instead, but it is formal and rather old-fashioned.
In modern speech, we use who, or we leave out the pronoun.
EXAMPLES:

• To whom did you wish to speak? (formal)

• Who would you like to speak to? (modern speech)

• You are referring to a person who no longer works here.

• The person to whom you are referring no longer works here.

• The person (who) you are referring to no longer works here.

THAT

 We use that for both a person and a thing/idea.
It should be noted, however, that who is preferred when referring to a particular person.
When that is used, it usually refers to classes or types of people.
EXAMPLES:

• This is the style that I want to use.

• The car that belongs to the company is the red one over there.

• She is the kind of person that/who can be trusted.

• He's the sort of player that/who attracts the crowds.

• I want to speak to the person who (not that) called me this morning.

• The person who (not that) borrowed the dictionary should return it as soon as possible.

Examples of use

I Know a woman. She speaks 6 languages. I know a woman who speaks 6 languages.

I know a woman. Her husband speaks 6 languages. I know a woman whose husband spIeaks 6 languages.

I spoke to a person yesterday. The person to whom I spoke yesterday (formal)/ The person I spoke to yesterday (informal)

I live in a house. It is 200 years old. I live in a house which/that is 200 years old.


That's the hotel that we stayed in last year. That's the hotel in which we stayed
last year.

Multiple Choice

_____ did you call last night?

• Who
• Whom

Multiple Choice

_______ emptied the recycling yesterday?

• Whom
• Fred
• Who

Multiple Choice

To _____ did you give the book?

• who
• Whom
• whom

Multiple Choice

Karen is the one ... earned the highest grade in her class.

• which
• who
• that

Multiple Choice

... one of you is going to the movies with us?

• which
• who
• that

Multiple Choice

Karen's test is the one ... is missing.

• which
• who
• that

Multiple Choice

.... answer is correct, A, B, or C?

• which
• who
• that

Multiple Choice

I  know "B" is the answer ... is correct. 

• which
• who
• that

Multiple Choice

Bob has a sister ____ attends college in New York.

• who
• that
• whose

Multiple Choice

That's the little boy ___ dog jumped through the window.

• who
• that
• whose

Multiple Choice

The jacket, ___ has pink buttons, is on sale. 

• that
• which

Multiple Choice

I have a pair of shoes ___ are very uncomfortable.

• that 
• which

Multiple Choice

The kid _____ cell phone rang in class had to be handed over to the teacher

• Whose
• That

Multiple Choice

The soccer player _____ is wearing number 23 has been injured.

• Who
• Whom

Multiple Choice

My brother, ______ I live with, is 35 years old.

• Whom
• Who

Multiple Choice

Many people thanked Mr. Brady and (I, me) for the free footballs.

• I
• me

Multiple Choice

Choose the best answer.

His horse, _______ is a female, won the race.

• who

• which

• whom

Multiple Choice

We use ____ for possession.

• whose

• that

• who

• when

Multiple Choice

Choose the best answer.

He is the baker __________ we saw in the TV yesterday.

• who

• which

• whom

Multiple Select

We use ____ & _____ for people.

• which

• who

• when

• where

• that

Multiple Select

We use ____ and ______ for animals, ideas and objects.

• which

• that

• who

• when

• where

Multiple Choice

That is the woman ______ house is worth nearly 2 million pounds.

• who

• whom

• whose

• that

Multiple Choice

I talked to the girl …………….. car had broken down in front of the shop.

• who

• whose

• which

• whome

Multiple Choice

The girl ______ Lisa talks to is my sister.

• who

• whose

• whom

• which

Multiple Choice

_______ jacket was in lost and found?

• Who's

• Whose

• Who

• Where