Course 2

RELATIVE CLAUSES
• Definition
• Classification
• Defining
• E.g. The book which I am reading is very good.

• Non-defining
• E.g. John, who is my best friend, is in Japan
now.
 RELATIVE CLAUSES (antecedent)
• The man who/that reads is Tim
• The man whose name I forgot is my
neighbour.
• The man whom you met is John

• The book which/that I like is very old.

• The book about which we talked is interesting
• The book whose covers are torn is mine.
EXERCISE 1 Join the sentences with who or
which
Beginnings Ends
[Link] you know a shop [Link] lives next door.
2.I know somebody [Link] stole my car.
3.I want some plated [Link]/she deals with exports
4.I was at school with the man [Link] isn’t working
5.I’d like to speak to the [Link] needs to be eaten
person
[Link]’s got friendly with a boy [Link] sells good coffee.
[Link] police haven’t found the [Link] last for years
man
[Link]’s some cheese in the [Link] could mend that chair
fridge
[Link]’ve got some light bulbs [Link] can go in the microwave
[Link] is the switch [Link] is driving that taxi
 Exercise 2 In which of the sentences below can we
leave out the relative pronoun?

1. That’s the woman who lives next door.

2. Our doctor is a person whom I really respect.
3. He had a simple idea which changes the world.
4. I’ve lost that nice ring which Bill gave me.
5. It’s a book that everybody talks about and nobody
reads.
6. Once there were three rabbits that lived near a river.
7. That’s the man who I wanted to see.
8. An orphan is a child who hasn’t got any parent.
9. He keeps telling you things which you already know.
10. They never thanked me for the money that I sent them.
 Exercise 3 Make each pair of sentences into one
sentence using who(m)/which/that. Decide where the
pronouns can be omitted.
1. You asked me to get you a paper. Here’s. (Here’s the paper that you asked me to get
you)
2. You recommended a film. We went to see the film, but we didn’t think much of it.
(We went to see the film which you recommanded)
3. My sister bought a new car last month. The car has broken down four times already.
(The car wich was bougt by my siser has broken down four times already)
4. You didn’t recognise an actor on television last night. The actor was Keifer
Sunderland. (The actor who you didn’t recognise was Keifer Sunderland)
5. Jane had some friends at school. Only a very few of the friends went on to university
(Only a very few of Jane’s friends went on to university)
6. My father had an operation for his heart problem. The operation was only a partial
success. (The operation that my father had was only a partial success)
7. Mark wrote an essay while we were on holidays. The essay has won a prize in the
school competition. (The essay that Mark wrote won a prize in the school
competition)
8. My daughter brings friends home. Some of the friends look as though they never
wash. (Some of the friends whom my doughter brought home look as though they
never wash)
 Exercise 4. Make sentences with whose:
e.g. A good builder is one whose houses don’t fall down.

1. A good parent is one whose they priorities are their childern.

2. A good gardener is one whose roses are beautifull
3.A good doctor is one whose pacents are cared well.
4.A good writer is that one whoes books are well sled
5.A good teacher is one whose loved by students.
6. A good tourist guide is one whoes find interesting places to
visit.
7. A good cook is one whose dishes are tasty .
 RELATIVE CLAUSES
• Summer is the time when people go on
holiday
• It happened in the room where there were
many guests.
• He gave no reason why he behaved like this.
 RELATIVE CLAUSES (style)
• The people (whom) you met are my friends.
• This is the man to whom I sold the car
• This is the man I sold the car to.
 RELATIVE CLAUSES
• The parliament, which has been in session for
two weeks, is not meeting today.
• Enescu, who is a famous musician, lived in
France.
• The play Romeo and Juliet, which I haven’t
read, is very sad.
 Exercise 5 defining or non-defining?
1. The woman who/that does my hair has just had a baby.
2. Dorothy, who does my hair, has just had a baby.
3. She married a man (that/who/whom)she met on a bus.
[Link] married a nice architect from Belfast, whom she met on a
bus.
[Link] you got a book that’s really easy to read?
6. I lent him The Old Man and the Sea, which is really easy to
read.
[Link] do you think of the wine (that) we drank last night?
8. I poured him a glass of wine, which he drank at once.
 Exercise 6 Change who/whom/which to that
or leave it out if possible:
[Link] is Peter Taylor, who works with my sister
2. People who don’t answer letters annoy me.
[Link] happened to the oranges I bought yesterday?
[Link] room, which isn’t used any more, belonged to my eldest son.
[Link] uncle Sebastian, who has always been a bit of a traveller, has just
gone off to Thailand.
[Link] live in a village called Netherworld, which has 150 inhabitants.
7.I like a film which has a beginning, a middle and an end – in that order.
8.I’ve had a card from Sally, who used to live next door. Do you remember
those people who we met in Corfu?
[Link] took twelve aspirins, which is six times the normal dose.
10. He published a book called Asleep in the Bath, which nobody ever read.
 RELATIVE CLAUSES (non-finite)
• The girls standing at the door are students.
• The note written by John is interesting.
• The time to do it is now.
 Exercise 7
Change the sentences as shown in the example
Paper that is made from rice is used for stationery.
Paper made from rice is used for stationary.

[Link]’s that goodlooking man who is talking to Alison?

[Link] that is left unattended will be taken away by the police.
3. Left-handed children who are forced to write their right hands
often develop psychological problems.
[Link] nurse who is looking after my aunt is very kind to her.
[Link] the rubbish that is floating into the sea is a real danger to health.
[Link] which is made in the traditional way costs more, but tastes
better.
[Link] tourists who are wearing trousers are not allowed in the
temple.
[Link] man who was bitten by my neighbour’s dog was her boss.