Mastering Relative Pronouns Quiz

Which of the following sentences correctly uses a relative pronoun to define a noun?

• The girl, who is wearing a red dress, is my sister.

• The girl who is wearing a red dress is my sister.

• The girl is my sister, she is wearing a red dress.

• The girl is my sister and she is wearing a red dress.

Answer explanation

The correct sentence, 'The girl who is wearing a red dress is my sister,' uses the relative pronoun 'who' to define 'the girl,' providing essential information about her. The other options do not define the noun correctly.

Which word in the following sentence is a relative pronoun? "The book that I borrowed was interesting."

• book

• that

• borrowed

• interesting

Answer explanation

In the sentence, 'that' is the relative pronoun. It introduces the relative clause 'that I borrowed,' providing more information about 'the book.' The other words do not serve this grammatical function.

Combine the following sentences using a relative pronoun: "I met a man. He can speak six languages."

• I met a man, he can speak six languages.

• I met a man who can speak six languages.

• I met a man which can speak six languages.

• I met a man and he can speak six languages.

Answer explanation

The correct choice is 'I met a man who can speak six languages.' The relative pronoun 'who' correctly refers to 'man' and connects the two sentences, while 'which' is incorrect for people and 'and' does not combine them properly.

Which sentence correctly uses a relative pronoun to ask a question?

• Who is the person that called you?

• Who is the person which called you?

• Who is the person whom called you?

• Who is the person whose called you?

Answer explanation

The correct choice is 'Who is the person that called you?' because 'that' is the appropriate relative pronoun for people in informal contexts. The other options use incorrect forms or are not standard English.

Identify the relative pronoun in the following sentence: "The house where I grew up has been sold."

• house

• where

• grew

• up

Answer explanation

The relative pronoun in the sentence is 'where', which introduces the clause 'where I grew up' and relates it to 'the house'. It specifies the location associated with the house.

Choose the correct relative pronoun to complete the sentence: "The artist ____ painted this picture is famous."

• which

• who

• whose

• whom

Answer explanation

The correct relative pronoun is 'who' because it refers to a person (the artist) and is used as the subject of the relative clause. 'Which' is for things, 'whose' indicates possession, and 'whom' is used as an object.

Which of the following sentences uses a relative pronoun incorrectly?

• The car that I bought is blue.

• The teacher whom I respect is retiring.

• The city which I visited was beautiful.

• The boy whose dog ran away is sad.

Answer explanation

The sentence 'The city which I visited was beautiful.' uses 'which' incorrectly. 'Which' should be used for non-restrictive clauses, while 'that' is preferred for restrictive clauses. The correct form is 'The city that I visited was beautiful.'.

Combine the sentences using an appropriate relative pronoun: "This is the student. Her essay won the prize."

• This is the student whose essay won the prize.

• This is the student who essay won the prize.

• This is the student which essay won the prize.

• This is the student whom essay won the prize.

Answer explanation

The correct choice is 'whose' because it indicates possession, linking the student to her essay. 'Who' and 'whom' refer to people but do not show possession, while 'which' is used for things, not people.

Which sentence contains a defining relative clause?

• My brother, who lives in Canada, is visiting.

• The man who lives next door is a doctor.

• The car, which is red, is mine.

• The teacher, whom I like, is absent.

Answer explanation

A defining relative clause provides essential information about a noun. In 'The man who lives next door is a doctor,' the clause 'who lives next door' defines which man is being referred to, making it a defining relative clause.

Select the sentence that correctly uses a relative pronoun to combine the ideas:

• The movie was exciting, I watched it last night.

• The movie that I watched last night was exciting.

• The movie, I watched last night, was exciting.

• The movie which I watched last night, was exciting.

Answer explanation

The correct choice is 'The movie that I watched last night was exciting.' It properly uses the relative pronoun 'that' to combine the ideas, making the sentence clear and grammatically correct.