Additional Relative Pronouns and Special Cases

This page covers more relative pronouns and their specific uses in English sentences.

Where / That:

• Used for places
• Can be replaced by "in/on/at which"
• Example: That's the hotel where we spent our holiday.

When / That:

• Used for time references
• Can be replaced by "in/on which"
• Example: 1989 is the year (when/in which/that) I moved to London.

Why / That:

• Used after "the reason"
• Can be replaced by "for which" or omitted
• Example: That's the reason (why/for which) I celebrate my birthday.

Which:

• Used to refer to an entire preceding clause
• Example: She helped me do the washing-up, which was kind of her.

What:

• Means "the thing that"
• Example: What I like in this village is clear air.

Definition: "What" as a relative pronoun combines the antecedent and the relative pronoun into one word, meaning "the thing that" or "that which."

Advanced Relative Clause Structures and Non-Defining Clauses

This page discusses more complex structures using relative pronouns and the distinction between defining and non-defining relative clauses.

Whom / Which with Quantifiers:

• Used with expressions like "some of," "many of," "all of," "none of," and "neither of"
• Example: He invited a lot of people, some of whom were my friends.

Non-Defining Relative Clauses:

• Provide additional, non-essential information
• Set off by commas
• Cannot use "that" as a relative pronoun
• Cannot omit the relative pronoun
• Example: Mary, who won 100 dollars, is my neighbour.

Highlight: Non-defining relative clauses add extra information that is not essential to the meaning of the main sentence and are always set off by commas.

Example: Paris, where I met my husband, is a beautiful city.

These advanced structures allow for more sophisticated sentence construction and the ability to provide additional information smoothly within a single sentence.

Relative Pronouns and Their Uses

This page introduces the main relative pronouns used in English and their specific applications.

Which / That:

• Used for things and animals
• Can be omitted when followed by a subject (pronoun or noun)
• Example: I read the book (which/that) you had given to me.

Who / That:

• Used for people
• Can be omitted when followed by a subject
• Example: I have a friend (who/that) I haven't seen for a long time.

Whom:

• Used for people, typically in formal contexts
• Used before the subject or after prepositions
• Example: The woman (whom/who/that) I met yesterday is my neighbour.

Example: The woman for whom I waited is my neighbour.

Whose:

• Indicates possession for both people and things
• Can be replaced by "of which" for things
• Example: That's the girl whose brother is a singer.

Vocabulary: "Whose" is used to show possession or belonging in relative clauses.