What are relative clauses in English?

Relative clauses are clausesNo definition set for clausesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. that give more information about a nounNo definition set for nounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. or noun phraseNo definition set for noun phraseLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum..

• The dog that has long fur likes to play fetch.

• I always eat lunch with my coworker who is a vegetarian.

• We don’t know to whom we should send this email.

• The person whose car is parked in my space will get their car towed.

In this post, we’ll talk all about relative clauses, including how to make a relative clause, what a relative pronoun is, and restrictive vs. non-restrictive relative clauses. Ready to jump in and learn all about relative clauses in English? Let’s get started!

Relative clauses are a type of dependent clauseNo definition set for dependent clauseLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. in English. Relative clauses usually modify a noun or a noun phrase.

Unlike adjectives, though, relative always go immediately after the noun phrase that they’re modifying:

In English, there is a distinction between two types of relative clauses: defining and non-defining relative clauses. It is important to know which type of relative clause you are using for two reasons: (1) because it impacts punctuation, and (2) because it can impact the relative pronoun you should use when forming a relative clause.

Here is the difference:

• A defining relative clause is a clause that restricts a group using a description. These kinds of clauses are not surrounded by commas.

• A non-defining relative clause is a clause that gives us additional, but non-essential information about a group that has already been defined. These are always separated out using commas.

Let’s look at some examples to see the difference:

• My nephews are the boys who are wearing green.

  → This is a defining relative clause. Only two boys are wearing green, so the relative clause helps us define, restrict, or pick out the members of our group.

• The kids who are in this picture are on a soccer team together.

  → This is also a defining relative clause. We cannot see other kids, but we know that other kids exist, so the relative clause still helps us restrict the members of the group.

• The kid on the left, who is named Michael, is the oldest.

  → This is a non-defining relative clause. The phrase the kid on the left already picks out one kid, so the relative clause only adds more information.

• I met the five kids on the right, who all live in my neighborhood, because they are friends with my nephews.

  → This is also a non-defining relative clause. The five kids on the right defines the group and the relative clause only adds more information.

In most cases a relative clause will have the following general structure:

But if you want to always form a relative clause correctly, it’s best to follow a few different steps. Start out by imagining a sentence with a relative clause as two separate statements. For example:

• The class has 25 students in it.

  The class starts at 8:00 a.m.

• You met a woman yesterday.

  I know the woman.

Then follow the steps below:

• Replace the repeated noun with a relative pronoun.

  • The class has 25 students in it.

    that starts at 8:00 a.m.

  • You met a woman yesterday.

    I know who.

  The pronoun that you use will depend on several factors. Have a look at the section on relative pronouns below to learn the rules!

• Next, we change the word order to make sure that relative pronoun is at or near the beginning of the clause:

  • The class has 25 students in it.

    that starts at 8:00 a.m.

  • You met a woman yesterday.

    who I know.

  We’ll cover the rules for exactly how and when to change the word order below!

• Add the relative clause to the new sentence so that it come directly after the noun that it’s describing:

  antecedentrelative clause

  The class that starts at 8:00am has 25 students in it.

  You met a woman who I know yesterday.

Let’s talk first about the relative pronouns, then we’ll come back to how to change the word order in just a minute!

The relative pronouns that we use in English are who, whom, whose, which, and that.

• Who and whom are used to refer to a person (singular), people (plural), or occasionally to animals.

  Most English speakers will almost always use who for any relative pronoun that refers back to a human:

  • Kevin, who lives in Alaska, likes to travel in the summer.

  • The person who I met yesterday has a very beautiful flower garden.

  • The teacher always rewards students who are listening to the directions.

  • I don’t know who this car belongs to.

  • Elizabeth, who I have known for ten years, just got a new job at my company.

  • I don’t remember who I talked to about the budget.

  Exception!

  If the relative pronoun immediately follows a preposition, you must use whom:

  • ✅ The teacher to whom I spoke was very kind.

  • ❌ The teacher to who I spoke was very kind.

  You can use whom when the pronoun is an objectNo definition set for objectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. or the object of a prepositionNo definition set for object of a prepositionLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. in the relative clause. However, this word is formal.

  • I don’t know to whom this car belongs.

  • Elizabeth, whom I have known for ten years, just got a new job at my company.

  • I don’t remember to whom I talked about the budget.

  Tip

  Very strict English teachers will tell you to only use who for the subjectNo definition set for subjectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. of a relative clause, but most English speakers will almost always use who for both subjects and objects, even in writing.

  If you want to be very formal, use who for subjects and whom for all objects, but otherwise it’s usually fine to just use who.

• Whose is a possessive relative pronoun that’s used to replace an owner or possessor of something. Unlike the interrogative pronoun whose, the relative pronoun whose can be used for human and non-human possessors.

  • Can the customer whose child is lost please come to the front of the store?

  • I bought a painting whose colors remind me of the morning sky.

  • Hailey, whose office is at the end of the hall, will answer that question.

  Tip

  To sound more fluent, avoid using verb be in a relative clause with whose. Instead rephrase:

  • 🆗 The person/children whose books these are.

  • ✅ The person/children who these books belong to.

• Which is used to refer to a thing (not a human or animal), but only if the clause is a non-defining relative clause:

  • The book, which I just finished reading, is on the coffee table.

  • Helen bought a new television, which was on sale.

  • That train, which leaves at 2:15, goes to Edinburgh.

• That is used to refer to a thing, person, or animal, but only if the clause is a defining relative clause:

  • The coworker that sits next to me is leaving for a new job.

  • The class that starts at 8 a.m. has 25 students in it.

  • I want a cake that has red and pink flowers on it.

  TipWhich relative pronoun to use for animals?

  Technically, you can use any relative pronoun for an animal. However, if you use who, it will sound more like you are thinking of the animal as a person or a character in a story. Using that is more neutral.

  • The spider that you squished yesterday…

    → This is the normal way to say it.

  • The spider who you squished yesterday…

    → You thought the spider was like a person, so this story is very sad! 😭

  You will therefore use who much more often with pets than with animals like insects or fish.

  Millie, who is my cat, is very sweet.

When we use a relative clause in a sentence, the phrase containing the relative pronoun always needs to come at the beginning of the relative clause.

Usually, you can just move the relative pronoun to the beginning. Have a look at these two basic examples:

• I love the song. Michael wrote that song.

  • Michael wrote that

    → Right now, the relative pronoun that is at the end of the relative clause, so we need to move it to the beginning of the clause.

  • that Michael wrote.

    → Now it’s in the correct place!

  • 🌟 I love the song that Michael wrote. 🌟

• I met the man. The man wrote that song.

  • who wrote that song.

    → In the relative clause, the relative pronoun who is already at the beginning of the clause, so we don’t need to make any changes!

  • 🌟 I met the man who wrote that song. 🌟

There are a couple of special cases to look at, though:

• When the relative pronoun is the object of a preposition, as in:

  She met the woman. + I had spoken to the woman

  You have two possibilities here, and there is no difference in meaning:

  • Move the relative pronoun to the front of the relative clause, and leave the preposition behind:

    She met the woman who I had spoken to.

  • Move both the pronoun and the preposition to the front of the relative clause. This word order is a little more formal.

    She met the woman to whom I had spoken.

• When the relative pronoun is the possessor in a possessive relationship:

  I met a dog + I knew the dog’s owner.

  In this case, we move both pronoun and the owned thing to the front:

  I met a dog + whose owner I knew.

Relative adverbs are adverbsNo definition set for adverbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. that are used to start a relative clause. A relative clause that starts with a relative adverb describes a noun, just like any other relative clause. However, a relative adverb usually replaces a larger phrase that contains a noun, but describes the place, direction, reason, time, or purpose of an action.

Let’s look very quickly at the three different relative adverbs:

• Where is used to replace a location or direction:

  • That’s the school + My son goes to that school.

  • That’s the school where my son goes.

• When is used to replace a time (a specific moment or a period of time) in a relative clause:

  • I remember the year. + During that year we won the Superbowl.

  • I remember the year when we won the Superbowl.

• Why is used to replace the reason or purpose:

  • I don’t know the reason + She left because of that reason.

  • I don’t know the reason why she left.

A reduced relative clause is a relative clause in English in which some words have been deleted. Relative clauses can be reduced only if the relative clause is a defining relative clause, under the following circumstances:

• Whenever the relative pronoun is the object of the defining relative clause or the object of a preposition, you can delete the relative pronoun.

  • • • relative pronoun

        ✅ The girl who I met yesterday gave me her phone number.

    • ✅ The girl I met yesterday gave me her phone number.

  • • • relative pronoun

        ✅ The book that I ordered arrived this morning.

    • ✅ The book I ordered arrived this morning.

  • • • relative pronoun

        ✅ The friend who I went to the party with was named Judy.

    • ✅ The friend I went to the party with was named Judy.

  Remember, you usually cannot remove the relative pronoun when it’s the subject of the relative clause:

  • relative pronoun

    ✅ The boy who sits next to me missed class today.

  • ❌ The boy sits next to me missed class today.

• If the auxiliary verbNo definition set for auxiliary verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. is be, you can delete both the relative pronoun and the auxiliary verb, even if the relative pronoun replaces the subject of the clause:

  • • • relative pronoun'be'

        ✅ The boy who is sitting next to me is eating a sandwich.

    • ✅ The boy sitting next to me is eating a sandwich.

  • • • relative pronoun'be'

        ✅ The book that is being written right now is about dragons.

    • ✅ The book being written right now is about dragons.

  But do not reduce the relative clause if be is the main verb!

  • relative pronoun'be'

    ✅ The book that is my favorite is about dragons.

  • ❌ The book my favorite is about dragons.

We covered a lot of information about relative clauses in this post! Just to make sure we remember everything, let’s do a quick summary of all the most important points:

• Relative clauses are a type of dependent clause in English that modifies a noun or noun phrase.

• Relative clauses can be defining (restricting a group) or non-defining (adding information about a group).

• Relative clauses are attached to the main clause with a relative pronoun, and the relative pronouns are who, whom, whose, which, and that.

• You can also start a relative clause with a relative adverb: when, where, why.

• There are a couple different ways to reduce relative clauses in English.

Wow, that’s a lot of info covered in one post. If you’ve made it this far, time to reward yourself with a little treat before diving into some of our relative clause practice activities!