Relative Pronouns

Relative pronouns

This is an important type of English pronouns and you really need to master it as much as possible.

what are relative pronouns?

These pronouns are:

(Who, Whom, Which, That and Whose)

• I drove the car that I got for my birthday.

(I drove the car) is (main clause)

(that) is (relative pronoun)

(I got for my birthday) is ( relative clause).

Relative Pronouns In English

Usage of relative pronouns

• A relative pronoun introduces a relative clause and there are two types of relative clauses

defining and non defining relative clauses.

First: defining relative clauses:

1. that type add information about someone or something.

2. this information is really important to understand  the general meaning of the sentence.

3. without that relative clause the sentence will make no sense,so you can't omit it.

4. you don't separate the relative pronoun from the main clause with a comma.

Let's take a closer look at these pronouns.

Relative Pronouns

•  (WHO)

who is for people and used as the subject of the verb.

Examples:

a). This is the teacher who have an expensive car.

b). I love the type of girls who have a sense of humor.

c). The girl who kissed me in the party is my ex-girlfriend.

c). The celebrity who is a legend is Nelson Mandella.

• Usage note: 

you can use (THAT) instead of who, but who is more usual.

• (WHOM)

Whom is for people and used as the object of a verb or preposition.

Examples:

a). The man whom I gave my business card is very rich.

b). She is the girl whom I loved in my teens.

c). The man whom I invited to my wedding party is my boss.

d). I met a man with whom I used to work.

• Usage note:

1. The relative pronoun here is optional, you can omit it. so you can say the first example that way:

• The man I gave my business card is very rich.

2. (Whom) is very formal and people tend to use (who) instead.

In the example number 4 :

in case you change whom with who, you need to put the preposition at the end of the sentence.

So it would be that way:

• I met a man who I used to work with.

Relative Pronouns

(WHICH)

Which is for things and used as a subject of a verb or as an object of a verb or preposition.

Examples:( subject )

a). They analyzed the remains of the bomb which exploded last year. 

b). The restaurant which is next to the pub is really good.

Examples:(object of a verb)

a). I lost my laptop which you gave me as a present .

b). My friend bought the car which I sold a few weeks ago.

c). These are principles which we all believe in.

• Usage note:

When the relative pronoun is used as an object, in this case it is optional.

you can use (THAT) instead of which. 

Example:(object of a preposition)

a). The death of his son was an experience from which he never fully recovered.

• Usage note:

When the relative pronoun is used as an object in this case it is optional.

So the sentence would be:

The death of his son was an experience he never fully recovered from.

(WHOSE)

Whose is the possessive relative pronoun in English

Examples:

a). The doctor whose clinic is down town died yesterday.

b). The company whose owner sold is very successful.

• Usage note:

Whose is used for people and thing

it can be replaced with (of which).

Second:Non-defining relative clauses:

1. These are clauses that give us extra information about something or someone already mentioned. 
2. The sentence will still make sense without the non-defining relative clause, but the clause gives you extra information.

Examples:

a). the wedding party, which was beautiful ended at mid night.

b). The finance minister, who has been under pressure to resign holding a press conference today.

• Usage note:

Notice that there is a comma before the relative pronoun to refer that what is coming is extra and not essential information.

That's it for this lesson.