RELATIVE CLAUSES (WHO, WHICH, THAT) FOR

B LEVEL
CONTENTS

I. RELATIVE CLAUSES (WHO, WHICH, THAT)

II. CONTROLLED PRACTICE
III. FREE PRACTICE
IV. REFERENCES
I. PRESENTATION
• Read the following text. Pay special attention to the words in bold.
PIERRE OMIDYAR and eBAY
Did you ever want to sell a birthday present which was valuable? Or an old toy
that is taking up space in your closet? In the old days, buyers and sellers were
limited to newspapers, garage sales, and flea markets in the area they lived. But
in the early 1990s, Omidyar had an idea. Omidyar, a computer programmer,
realized that sellers no longer needed to find buyers who lived in their local
area. He came up with the idea of an online shop which is called “eBay”. He
didn’t charge money at first because he wasn’t sure eBay would work. Buying
online requires you to trust sellers you’ve never met. But people liked eBay.
Soon there was so much activity on eBay. So Omidyar started to charge the
sellers a small fee for each sale. By 1998, eBay had become so big that Omidyar
needed a business expert. He brought in a well-known CEO who made eBay a
success. She was Meg Whitman. She changed eBay into a company which sold
both used and new items in several categories. In 2008, smartphones and
tablets changed the way people shopped; people no longer had to shop from
their home computers. And the company created a phone app which allowed
people to shop 24/7 and pay with one click.
Comprehension Check: Based on the reading, choose the correct answer
to complete the statements.
1. People may give away items which _________.
a) they like to use b) take up place in their homes

2. Pierre Omidyar was a _________.

a) computer programmer b) a local in a small town
 
3. In the early 2000s, people could buy _________ on eBay.
a) only used items b) items using their phones

ANSWERS: 1- B 2- A 3- B
 Introduction: Relative Clauses (Adjective Clauses)
• Note: An adjective clause and relative clause are the same. We will use the word relative clause.
• Read the examples of relative clauses (words in bold) and the explanations in the box. Then, work
with a partner and answer the following questions.
Examples Explanation
∙ I wanted to sell a birthday present ∙ The relative clause “which was valuable”
which was valuable. describes the birthday present.
   
∙ Omidyar realized that sellers no ∙ The relative clause “who lived in their
longer needed to find buyers who local area” describes the buyers.
lived in their local area.

• Why do we use relative (adjective) clauses?

• Why is it called a relative (adjective) clause?
 Introduction: Relative Clauses (Adjective Clauses)
Answers:
• Why do we use relative (adjective) clauses?
To describe (modify) the noun and to combine two sentences into one.
• Why is it called a relative (adjective) clause?
Because they do the job of an adjective. Relative clauses modify (describe) nouns, just like adjectives. In
these examples, the relative clauses describe the nouns: present and sellers.

• Now, take a look at these examples:

EX1: The happy woman danced across the street.

Happy is an adjective describing the noun woman. It tells us which woman. Which woman? The happy
woman.
 Introduction: Relative Clauses (Adjective Clauses)

EX2: The woman who looked happy danced across the street.
This time, we have a whole clause doing the job of the adjective.

• The clause who looked happy describes the noun woman. It contains a subject (who) and a verb
(looked), and it answers the adjective question which one.

• Which woman? The woman who looked happy.

• The whole clause is acting as an adjective. Because of this, we call it a relative clause.
 Why Use Adjective Clauses?
• You are able to combine two sentences into one. A sentence with a relative clause is called a complex
sentence. Here are two simple sentences.
I study at a college. The college is downtown.
• To make a relative clause, we need to find two ideas in these sentences that refer to the same thing.
What is the same in these two sentences?

The word ‘college‘ is in both!

So, instead of saying the word twice, we can replace one word with a relative pronoun and make a
relative clause.
Here are the steps:
 Steps to Make Sentences with Relative Clauses

• Step 1: Find the two words that refer to the same thing.
I study at a college. The college is downtown.

• Step 2: Replace the second word with a correct relative pronoun (that/which/who).
I study at a college. The college WHICH is downtown.

• Step 3: Move the whole {adjective clause} after the noun it modifies.
I study at a college {which is downtown}.

That’s it! Now you have a complex sentence ☺

 Steps to Make Sentences with Relative Clauses
Before we go further, let’s look at a table of the relative pronouns. Relative pronouns introduce relative
clauses.

who used for people only

which used for things, items,
animals

that used for people and

things
II. CONTROLLED PRACTICE
Look at these two simple sentences. Work with a partner and follow the steps to combine the
sentences to make a relative clause.
The woman is in my class.  She likes tennis.
Answer:
Step 1: Find the two words that refer to the same thing/person.
The woman is in my class.  She likes tennis.
Step 2: Replace the second word with a relative pronoun.
The woman is in my class.  She WHO/THAT likes tennis.
Step 3: Move the whole {relative clause} behind the noun it modifies. These two sentences are both
correct:
The woman {who likes tennis} is in my class.   The woman {that likes tennis} is in my class.

Well done!
II. CONTROLLED PRACTICE: Let’s practice more ☺
Here are some sentences. You can follow the three steps to create a relative clause. Remember to
move the relative clause after the noun it modifies!
• Do you see the cat? It is on the roof.

• The man is a dentist. He lives next to me.

• People shouldn’t throw stones. They live in glass houses.

Answers:
• Do you see the cat that is on the roof? Do you see the cat which is on the roof? 
• The man who lives next to me is a dentist. That man that lives next to me is a dentist.
• People who / that live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.
II. CONTROLLED PRACTICE: Let’s practice more ☺
Write the correct relative pronoun «WHO or WHICH» in the gaps.

• He’s the only student _______  knew

WHO the answer.

• Did you see the painting _______

WHICH was on the wall?

• This is the only bridge _______

WHICH  goes to the island.

• There are many children _______

WHO are not able to go to school.

• I went to an Italian restaurant  _______

WHICH  has great desserts.
III. FREE PRACTICE: Let’s have some fun ☺
Let’s play the game Taboo to make relative clauses.
Rule 1: You should describe the image without using any of the words on the screen
Rule 2: Try to use two relative clauses (at least) to describe it.

EX: You need to describe the Eiffel Tower but you can’t say:
– Paris
– France
– Tower
– Tall
So what do you do? How about this:
• “It’s a famous landmark which is in a popular European city. It is a big structure that is made of
metal.”
III. FREE PRACTICE: Let’s have some fun ☺

Picture 1 can’t say: Picture 2 can’t say:

dog fly
baby airport
pet sky

pilot

Picture 3 can’t say:

sweet
chocolate
bake
IV. REFERENCES

• https://www.englishcurrent.com/grammar/study-adjective-cla
uses-relative-pronouns-exercises/
• https://eltngl.com/assets/downloads/gic_pro0000000555/gic3
_u7.pdf
• https://ielts-teaching.com/a-fun-way-to-practice-adjective-clau
ses/