M. Martín Abeleira.

What are relative clauses?A subordinate clause depending on a main clause which allows

us to add information about people or things without a need to repeat the name.

+This is the house. +The house was built in 1890.

This is the house that was built in 1890

A relative pronoun joins the ANTECEDENT to the relative clause. The antecedent is a word that belongs to the main clause. It is the person, object, place, etc. The relative clause refers to.

The relative clause always follows its antecedent.

Relative Pronouns

WHO

WHOM

THAT

WHICH

WHOSE

Refers to people – SUBJECT

Refers to people – OBJECT

Refers to people and things

Refers to things

Refers to POSSESSION

Relative Adverbs

They are not pronouns but we can use them in the same way.

WHEN

WHERE

WHY

TIME

PLACE

REASON

Some examples:

A thief is a person who / that steals things.

The man whom I met in the party told me the truth.

A coffee maker is a machine which / that makes coffee.

This is the girl whose mother is a teacher.

I remember the day when I met him.

That’s the supermarket where I buy the food.

That’s the reason why I didn’t go to the party.ANTECEDENT RELATIVE PRONOUN OR ADVERB

Fill in the blanks :

I met a woman………… spoke five languages.

A liar is a person …………. doesn’t tell the truth.

A musician is a person ………… plays an instrument.

I didn’t remember the man ………… was playing the piano.

A hairdryer is a machine ……….. dries the hair .

A fridge is a machine ……….. keeps the food cold and fresh.

A parrot is an animal ………..can imitate human language.

A notebook is a thing …………is used for writing in it.

Types of relative clauses

Defining relative clauses:

The computer that we bought is very expensive

Non – defining relative clauses:

My house, which is quite comfortable, needs redecorating

Defining relative clauses

They specify the person,object, time or place we are talking about.

They are necessary to understand the antecedent.

The relative pronoun can be omitted if it is not the subject of the relative sentence.

When the relative pronoun goes with a preposition we normally omit it and place the preposition at the end of the relative clause.

The man who is wearing a hat is my husband

I don’t know the woman who was talking to you

The woman (who) is wearing a red dress is my mother

My sister is the girl you are looking at

Non-definig relative clauses

They add information about the antecedent, but they are not necessary to understand it.

They are always placed between commas.

The relative pronoun can never be omitted.

‘That’ is not used in non-defining relative clauses.

My friend, who has never been abroad, speaks English fluently

Let’s practise…

Make one sentence from two:

1.-A man phoned. He didn’t give his name.

2.-A woman opened the door. She was wearing a yellow dress.

3.-A policeman stopped our car. He was very friendly.

4.-Emma is my classmate. She is very beautiful.

5.-I liked the book. It’s very interesting.

6.-Jim was wearing a big hat. It was too big for him.

7.-I live in a house.It’s 500 years old

Let’s check…

Answers:

1.-The man who phoned didn’t give his name.

2.-The woman who opened the door was wearing a yellow dress.

3.-The policeman who stopped our car was very friendly.

4.-Emma, who is my classmate, is very beautiful.

5.-I liked the book, which was very interesting.

6.-Jim was wearing a hat which was too big for him.

7.-The house where I live is 500 years old.

Some more practice

Give a definition for:

1.- A teacher.

2.- A pencil.

3.- A neighbour.

4.- A vet.

5.- A violinist.

6.- A friend.