Relative Pronouns

relative
use example
pronoun
I told you about the woman who
who subject or object pronoun for people
lives next door.
subject or object pronoun for animals and Do you see the cat which is lying
which
things on the roof?
He couldnt read which surprised
which referring to a whole sentence
me.
Do you know the boy whose
whose possession for people animals and things
mother is a nurse?
object pronoun for people, especially in non-
I was invited by the professor
whom defining relative clauses (in defining relative
whom I met at the conference.
clauses we colloquially prefer who)
subject or object pronoun for people, animals
I dont like the table that stands in
that and things in defining relative clauses (who or
the kitchen.
which are also possible)

Choose the correct relative pronoun.

1. This is the man _____ built our house.

2. There is the bridge _____ we have to cross.
3. The girl ____ lives next door is very nice.
4. The bus ____ takes you to the station should be here any minute.
5. This is the dog ____ barks every night.

Decide whether the relative pronoun is necessary or not.

1. This is the ring that I found yesterday.

relative pronoun is necessary
relative pronoun is not necessary
2. Do you know the man that is speaking with Anne?
relative pronoun is necessary
relative pronoun is not necessary
3. I still have the book that you gave me.
relative pronoun is necessary
relative pronoun is not necessary
 4. Is this the woman that lost her purse?
relative pronoun is necessary
relative pronoun is not necessary
5. Is this the key that we were looking for?
relative pronoun is necessary
relative pronoun is not necessary

Complete the sentences with relative clauses. Use who or which.

1. A Dutch is a person (live in the Netherlands)

2. A giant is someone (be very tall)
3. An alarm clock is a clock (wake you up in the morning)
4. A ladybird is a red beetle (have black spots on its back)
5. A waitress is a woman (serve food and drinks in a restaurant)

Word formation
In a sentence or text you have to change the form of a word, e.g. from a noun to an adjective, or
from a verb to a noun. For example:

The _____ was very nervous. (sing)

You have to complete the sentence with the person noun (singer). You change the verb (sing)
into the person noun (singer).

Look at the word you have to change. Which words do you know that are in the same
word family?
The beginning of the word is often the same and the end of the word changes.
What form is the new word? A verb? A noun? An adjective? An adverb?
Nouns often end: -ment, -ion, -ness, -ity.
People nouns often end: -er, -or, -ist, -ian.
Adjectives often end: -able, -ible, -ive, -al, -ic, -ed, -ing.
Some verbs end: -ise, -ate, -en.
Adverbs often end: -ly.
Is the new word negative? If so, you may need a prefix, e.g. un- (unhappy), im-
(impolite), in- (inexperienced), dis- (dishonest), etc.
Write the correct form of the word in brackets to fill the gaps.

1. He gets a lot of (ENJOY) from football.______________

2. Money doesnt always bring (HAPPY)._________________
3. It is (HONEST) to take something that isnt yours._______________
4. My dad gets very (PATIENT) when he has to wait ages for the train._______________
5. I want to be a (SCIENCE) when Im older._______________
6. Its snowing. You need to ride your bike (CAREFUL).__________________
7. (PERSONAL) speaking, I didnt like the film._______________________
8. She's (OBSESS) with fashion. She buys all the fashion magazines._______________