As the name suggests, these clauses give essential information to define or identify the person or thing we are talking about. Obviously, this is only necessary if there is more than one person or thing involved.
Section heading[]
Example[]
- Dogs that like cats are very unusual.
In this sentence we understand that there are many dogs, but it is clear that we are only talking about the ones that like cats.
Punctuation
- Commas are not used in defining relative clauses.
Relative pronouns
The following relative pronouns are used in defining relative clauses:
Person | Thing | Place | Time | Reason | |
Subject |
who/that |
which/that |
|
|
|
Object |
who/whom/that/ |
which/that/ |
where |
when |
why |
Possessive |
whose |
whose |
Notes:
- The relative pronoun stands in place of a noun.
This noun usually appears earlier in the sentence:
The woman |
who/that |
spoke at the meeting |
was very knowledgeable. |
Noun, subject of |
relative pronoun referring to 'the woman', subject of 'spoke' |
verb + rest of relative clause |
verb + rest of main clause |
- Who, whom and which can be replaced by that. This is very common in spoken English.
- The relative pronoun can be omitted when it is the object of the clause
The woman |
that |
the man loved |
was living in New York. |
Noun, subject of main clause |
relative pronoun, referring to 'the woman', object of 'loved' |
verb + rest of relative clause |
verb + rest of main clause. |
(You can usually decide whether a relative pronoun is an object because it is normally followed by another subject + verb.)
4. Whose is used for things as well as for people.
Example[]
- Dogs that like cats are very unusual.
In this sentence we understand that there are many dogs, but it is clear that we are only talking about the ones that like cats.
Punctuation
- Commas are not used in defining relative clauses.
Relative pronouns
The following relative pronouns are used in defining relative clauses:
Person | Thing | Place | Time | Reason | |
Subject |
who/that |
which/that |
|
|
|
Object |
who/whom/that/ |
which/that/ |
where |
when |
why |
Possessive |
whose |
whose |
Notes:
- The relative pronoun stands in place of a noun.
This noun usually appears earlier in the sentence:
The woman |
who/that |
spoke at the meeting |
was very knowledgeable. |
Noun, subject of |
relative pronoun referring to 'the woman', subject of 'spoke' |
verb + rest of relative clause |
verb + rest of main clause |
- Who, whom and which can be replaced by that. This is very common in spoken English.
- The relative pronoun can be omitted when it is the object of the clause
The woman |
that |
the man loved |
was living in New York. |
Noun, subject of main clause |
relative pronoun, referring to 'the woman', object of 'loved' |
verb + rest of relative clause |
verb + rest of main clause. |
(You can usually decide whether a relative pronoun is an object because it is normally followed by another subject + verb.)
4. Whose is used for things as well as for people.