Unit 11. Arts and
Creation
Grammar
Relative
clauses
|
Defining
Relative Clauses |
Non-defining
Relative Clauses |
|
v
give us essential information –that
tells us who or what we are talking about; v
No use a comma |
v
give us extra information which isn't
absolutely necessary. v
We use commas to separate them from the
rest of the sentence, unless they come at the end of the sentence, when we
use a comma and a full stop. |
|
The
woman lives next door. She works in a bank. The woman who lives next door works in a bank. |
That
grey thing isn't very traditional. You can see it on the roof there. That grey thing, which you can see on the roof there, isn’t
very traditional. |
A.
Study these examples
The woman who
lives next door works in a bank. (The woman lives next door. She works in a
bank.)
That grey thing,
which you can see on the roof there, isn’t very traditional. (That grey
thing isn't very traditional. You can see it on the roof there.)
The parts of the
sentences in bold above are relative clauses. We use relative clauses to
describe or give extra information about something we have already mentioned.
We often use relative pronouns (e.g. who, where, that, which, whose) to
introduce relative clauses.
In the first example
'who lives next door' is defining relative clause. Defining relative
clauses give us essential information – information that tells us who or what
we are talking about.
In the second
example 'which you can see on the roof there'. Non-defining relative
clauses give us extra information which isn't absolutely necessary. We use
commas to separate them from the rest of the sentence, unless they come at the
end of the sentence, when we use a comma and a full stop.
B.
Complete the following sentences with correct relative pronouns and write
whether the clauses are defining or non-defining.
a. That's the
house …… I was born.
That’s the house where I
was born.
- Defining
b. My aunt Nita,
…… a journalist, is coming to visit next week.
My aunt Nita, who is
a journalist, is coming to visit next week.
-Non-defining
c. People ……
like outdoor activities will love our holidays.
People who like
outdoor activities will love our holidays.
- Defining
d. The early
1960s, …… the Beatles first started, was a very exciting time in pop culture.
The early 1960s, when the
Beatles first started, was a very exciting time in pop culture.
- Non-defining
e. My essay on
Shakespeare, …… I found quite difficult, got a really good mark in the end.
My essay on Shakespeare, which I
found quite difficult, got a really good mark in the end.
- Non-defining
f. The Mayans,
…… lived in Central America, built many stunning temples.
The Mayans, who lived
in Central America, built many stunning temples.
- Non-defining
g. That's the
girl …… brother is in your class.
That's the girl whose brother
is in your class.
- Defining
h. The snake ……
was in the garden last week belongs to our next-door neighbor.
The snake that was
in the garden last week belongs to our next-door neighbor.
- Defining
C.
Join the following pairs of sentences with appropriate relative clause.
a. He is a
musician. His albums have sold millions.
He is a musician whose albums
have been sold millions.
b. Amelia speaks
English and Chines fluently. She is from Shanghai.
Amelia who speaks English and
Chinese fluently is from Shanghai.
c. That's the
stadium. Real Madrid plays there.
That’s the stadium where Real
Madrid plays.
d. Dublin is my
favourite city. It is the capital of Ireland.
Dublin is my favourite city which
is the capital of Ireland.
e. The person
was really helpful. They spoke to him.
The person to whom they spoke
was really helpful.
f. This
smartphone takes great photos. I bought it last week.
This smartphone which
I bought last week takes great photos.
EXTRA QUESTIONS
Join the following pairs of sentences with appropriate relative
clause. Complete the sentences with relative pronouns. Combine the TWO
sentences to ONE, using a relative pronoun.
1) 1) A boy
.......... sister is in my class was in the back at that time
2)
A
calendar is something .......... tells you the date.
3)
A famine
was the reason .......... so many Irish people emigrated to the USA in the 19th
century.
4)
A
greengrocer's is a shop .......... you can buy vegetables.
5)
A guide
is a person .......... shows tourists around a place.
6)
A horror
film was the reason.......... I couldn't sleep last night.
7)
A man
.......... mobile was ringing did not know what to do.
8)
A police
officer .......... car was parked at the next corner stopped.
9)
A racket
is something .......... you use to hit a ball when you play tennis or
badminton.
10)
A stamp
is something .......... you put on a letter if you want to send it.
11)
A woman
.......... daughter was crying tried to calm her.
12)
Antonio
Banderas, .......... is married to Melanie Griffith, was born in Málaga.
13)
Avatar,
.......... we saw a few days ago, won several Oscars.
14)
Can you
tell me about the policeman, .......... you spoke with this morning?
15)
Cheese
is food .......... mice like eating.
16)
Christmas
is a day. People are happy.
17)
Christopher
Columbus was the sailor .......... discovered America.
18)
D.H.
Lawrence, .......... was an English author, wrote many interesting novels.
19)
Dan says
he will always remember the day .......... his parents first bought him a bike
for his birthday.
20)
Decorating
is a difficult job. I hate it.
21)
Decorating
is a difficult job. I hate it.
22)
Did I
tell you about the people .......... live next door?
23)
Do you
know .......... there are no elephants in South America?
24)
Do you
know the girl .......... danced with me?
25)
Do you
know the girl..........I danced with?
26)
Do you
know the reason .......... so many people in the world learn English?
27)
Do you
know the shop .......... Andrew picked me up?
28)
Edinburgh
is the town ..........Alexander Graham Bell was born.
29)
Food
.......... is imported from other countries is often more expensive than local
food.
30)
Give
this medicine to the parents .......... child is ill.
31)
Has this
paper got a flavour .......... pleases you?
32)
Have you
met anyone else .......... does such tricks?
33)
Have you
read about the schoolgirl .......... started her own business and is now a
millionaire?
34)
He came
with a friend ..........waited outside in the car.
35)
He
didn't wait at the traffic lights .......... were red.
36)
He eats
only the paper .......... his wife makes.
37)
He wore
a mask ..........made him look like Mickey Mouse.
38)
He’s one
of the people .......... I really like.
39)
Here is
a big thank you to all .......... contributed to this wonderful website.
40)
Here is
the place .......... grandpa always used to talk about.
41)
His wife
is a woman .......... loves a joke.
42)
I am in
need of a coat .......... will keep me warm.
43)
I cannot
remember the reason .......... he wanted us to leave.
44)
I can't
remember the name of the street. I lost my passport there.
45)
I have a
new camera. I bought it last week.
46)
I helped
the old lady .......... books fell on the floor.
47)
I know a
great restaurant .......... we can get good food.
48)
I know a
man .......... eats paper.
49)
I live
in Canada, .......... is a densely populated country.
50)
I love
the ice-cream .......... they sell in that shop.
51)
I met a
girl (the girl was a doctor)
52)
I often
buy cheese (the cheese is imported from Paris)
53)
I often
visit my grandparents, .......... live a few blocks down the street.
54)
I passed
the entrance test. That is quite difficult to do.
55)
I think
the people .......... that live on the island are very friendly.
56)
I
visited one of my uncles, .......... lives on the other side of town.
57)
I want
to find a man .......... will lend me money.
58)
I went
to the restaurant (I read about the restaurant in the newspaper)
59)
I wrote
to the friend (you met the friend last week)
60)
I’m
looking for someone .......... I can trust.
61)
I'll
never forget the day. I got my first bike on that day.
62)
I'll
show you the church. I got married there.
63)
Ingrid
went to see the doctor yesterday. He is a friend of hers.
64)
Is he
the person .......... lives with you?
65)
Is this
store .......... you said you bought the fishing equipment?
66)
It’s a
kind of paper .......... you can eat.
67)
Jane is
a person .......... everybody likes.
68)
Jane
says that the house .......... Tom has bought has a beautiful garden.
69)
Jane,
.......... mother is a physician, is very good at biology.
70)
Jerry
received a bad mark on his essay. It was only one page long.
71)
John
belongs to a group of people. They send food packages to Africa.
72)
John
made a copy of the photo (I took the photo)
73)
July and
August are the months .......... most people go on holiday.
74)
Lee
teaches a class of students .......... native language is not English.
75)
London,
.......... is on the river Thames, is the capital of the United Kingdom.
76)
Love is
a feeling .......... nobody can describe.
77)
Most of
the people .......... she met were asylum seekers.
78)
Mr.
Reynolds had to do all the work himself. His secretary left a few days ago.
79)
Mr.
Reynolds had to do all the work himself. His secretary left a few days ago.
80)
Mrs.
Flowers has paintings in her house. They are worth over $10,000.
81)
My
classmate, .......... studied hard for the test, failed.
82)
My dad
knows a man .......... brother works in the White House.
83)
My
friend invited many people. His house is huge.
84)
My
parents remember the time .......... there was no internet.
85)
My
teacher, .......... came to Spain in 2001, likes to ride her mountain
bike.
86)
She
bought a car (her sister liked the car)
87)
She
didn’t see the snake .......... was lying on the ground.
88)
Socks
are things .......... you wear on your feet.
89)
Steven
is an architect. His designs have won many awards.
90)
Strikers
are soccer players .......... try to score goals for their team.
91)
That is
a museum..........I like very much.
92)
That is
a museum..........lies in the heart of the town.
93)
That is
the man. I met him at Alice’s party.
94)
That man
is a politician. I forgot his name.
95)
That's
the drawer .......... I keep my jewellery.
96)
The
accountant was arrested (the accountant works for my father's company)
97)
The
actor is very famous. I met him a few days ago.
98)
The
apples .......... are lying on the table are bad.
99)
The
apples .......... we bought in the shop are bad.
100)
The bad
weather is the reason .......... I didn’t come to practice yesterday.
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