RELATIVE CLAUSES

4º ESO
I.E.S. ARCIPRESTE DE CANALES
 RELATIVE CLAUSES

➢ Relative clauses give us essential or extra information about

someone/something in the sentence.

This is the bar where I had dinner last night.

My mum, who is a writer, has won a Pulitzer prize.

➢ Relative clauses are introduced by relative pronouns.

➢ The relative pronoun always comes after the noun it describes and can
function as the subject or the object of the clause.
 RELATIVE CLAUSES
➢ We use relative clauses to avoid repeating words, or to combine
two clauses.

➢ Relative clauses can be: Defining

Non-defining
 RELATIVE PRONOUNS

WHO PEOPLE WHERE PLACE

THINGS AND WHEN TIME

WHICH
ANIMALS

WHOSE POSSESSION WHY REASON

 RELATIVE PRONOUNS
RELATIVE CAN BE REPLACED
USE EXAMPLES
PRONOUN BY…
I told you about the woman who
who people that
lives next door.
things and Did you watch the film which
which animals
that
was on TV last night?
Do you know the boy whose
whose possession Ø
mother is a nurse?
This is the place where they
where place in which
filmed Citizen Kane.
Do you remember the day when
when time in which
we met?
That’s the reason why he is so
why reason Ø
popular.
 ACTIVITY
Fill in the gaps with the correct relative
1. which
This is the bank_____________ was robbed yesterday.
2. A boy ,___________
whose sister is in my class, was in the bank at
that time.
3. The man______________
who robbed the bank had two pistols.
4. He wore a mask _______made
which him look like Mickey Mouse.
5. why
Do you know the reason_________________ she is so
upset?
6. when
The day _____________________you saw me I was
feeling sick.
7. where
The library is a place ___________________you can
borrow books.
SUBJECT OR
OBJECT
PRONOUN?
 SUBJECT PRONOUN

If the relative pronoun is followed by a verb, the relative pronoun is a subject

pronoun.

The restaurant which won the medal came first in the competition

WHICH IS THE SUBJECT

Subject pronouns cannot be omitted in defining relative clauses.

 OBJECT PRONOUN?
If the relative pronoun is not followed by a verb (but by a noun or pronoun), the
relative pronoun is an object pronoun.

The restaurant which I went to came first in the competition.

WHICH IS THE OBJECT

Object pronouns can be omitted in defining relative clauses.

 ACTIVITY
Decide whether the relative pronoun is a subject pronoun or an
object pronoun.
1. Do you know the girl who I danced with? object

2. Do you know the girl who danced with me? subject

3. The apples that are lying on the table are bad. subject
4. The apples that we bought in the shop are bad. object
5. We will stay at a hotel which is not far from the beach. subject
6. We will stay at a hotel which my friend has recommended to us. object
7. That is a museum which I like very much. object
8. That is a museum which lies in the heart of the town. subject
 RELATIVE CLAUSES CAN BE:

NON
DEFINING
DEFINING

This is the man whose Mr. Ellis, whose portrait I drew,

portrait I drew. is a very famous artist

Only one Mr. Ellis is a famous artist.

There are millions of men in the
The relative clause is not necessary
world. We have to identify (DEFINE)
and we can omit it, because it does
this one in particular.
not identify (NOT DEFINE) the person.
DEFINING
RELATIVE
CLAUSES
 DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES:

➢ Give essential/important information.

➢ Cannot be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas.
➢ Can NEVER BE OMITTED → if we remove the defining relative clause, the
sentence doesn’t make sense.

This is the woman who wrote the best novel in Spain.

 IN DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES:
➢ The relative pronoun can be omitted only when it functions as an OBJECT
PRONOUN.
This is the man (who) I married 20 years ago.
This is the man who discovered the penicillin.
➢ The relative pronoun “that” can be used.

This is the song that I told you about.

I saw the dog that you abandoned last year.
NON-DEFINING
RELATIVE
CLAUSES
 NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES:
➢ Give additional/extra information.
➢ Can be omitted → since the sentence makes sense without the relative
clause.
➢ Go between commas in the middle of the sentence.
*** Sometimes non-defining relative clauses can come at the end of the
sentence.

Dune, which is the best film ever, has been nomited to the Oscars.

We finally got tickets for the concert, which was very lucky.
 IN NON-DEFINING RELATIVE
CLAUSES:
➢ The relative pronoun can NEVER be omitted

Tom Holland, is British, is a famous actor.

Tom Holland, who is British, is a famous actor.

➢ The relative pronoun “that” cannot be used.

These bikes, that cost a fortune, are made in Japan.

These bikes, which cost a fortune, are made in Japan.
GRAMMAR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN

Defining Non-defining
 ACTIVITY
Indicate if the following sentences are defining or non defining. Add
commas when necessary.

1. This is the bike that my brother stole.

D
2. , ,
Mrs. Evans who is now a famous politician used to be my
ND

teacher
3. I have visited the university which I like the most.
D
4. , ,
Dr. Foster who looked after my uncle lives in New York N D
5. , ,
Picasso whose works are famous all over the world was born N D
in Malaga.
6. Look at the house that we bought last year. D
7. , ,
The children who saw the accident were very worried N D