relative clauses
DESCRIPTION
Grammar explanationTRANSCRIPT
Defining & Non-defining
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
A relative sentence is a subordinate clause that lets us add some information about people or things without the need to repeat it.
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
They appear after the antecedent, which is the element that we are trying to avoid repeating.
There are two types of relative clauses
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES NON - DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES
These clauses identify which things or people the speaker is talking about. We do not use commas with these clauses
These clauses add extra information about a person or thing which is already identified. We use commas here
The man who discovered America lived in the 15th century
My sister, who is 22 years old, is living in Italy
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHO (M)
THAT
WHICH
WHOSE
WHERE
WHEN
WHY
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WHO (M)
It is used when the antecedent is a person, both in defining and in non-defining relative clauses
Obama, who is the President of the USA, was elected a few years ago.
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHO (M)
It is used when the antecedent is a person, both in defining and in non-defining relative clauses
Obama, who is the President of the USA, was elected a few years ago.
Sometimes, the verb in the subordinate clause needs a particular preposition. In these cases, we have two options:
John is my cousin. They were talking about him.
John, about whom they were talking, is my cousin
John, who they were talking about, is my cousin
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THATIt is used when the antecedent is either a person or a thing in
defining relative clauses
The house that I like is near the town centre.
The person that I like is very charming
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
THATIt is used when the antecedent is either a person or a thing in
defining relative clauses
The house that I like is near the town centre.
The person that I like is very charming
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHICH
It is used when the antecedent is a thing, both in defining and in
non-defining relative clauses
It is also used when the antecedent is a whole sentence
or idea.
These trousers, which are brand new, don’t fit you
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHICH
It is used when the antecedent is a thing, both in defining and in
non-defining relative clauses
It is also used when the antecedent is a whole sentence
or idea.
These trousers, which are brand new, don’t fit you.
They got divorced last week, which surprised everyone.
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHICH
It is used when the antecedent is a thing, both in defining and in
non-defining relative clauses
It is also used when the antecedent is a whole sentence
or idea.
These trousers, which are brand new, don’t fit you.
They got divorced last week, which surprised everyone.
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHOSE
It usually appears when the antecent is a person and we want to introduce the idea of possession
Emma, whose hair was long and dark, has dyed it.
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHOSE
It usually appears when the antecent is a person and we want to introduce the idea of possession
Emma, whose hair was long and dark, has dyed it.
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHY
It is used to mean the reason why
That is the reason why argue so much
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WHERE
WHY
It is used to mean the reason why
That is the reason why argue so much
It is used when the antecedent is a place
This is the hospital where my grandmother was operated
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHERE
WHEN
WHY
It is used to mean the reason why
That is the reason why argue so much
It is used when the antecedent is a place
This is the hospital where my grandmother was operated
It is used when the antecedent is a moment
In 1992, when I was born, my parents lived in York
Eduardo Arcas Domínguez - IES Diego Torrente Pérez
WHERE
WHEN
WHY
It is used to mean the reason why
That is the reason why argue so much
It is used when the antecedent is a place
This is the hospital where my grandmother was operated
It is used when the antecedent is a moment
In 1992, when I was born, my parents lived in York