Use relative pronouns: who, whom, whose, which, and that

Key Notes:

Definition of Relative Pronouns

• Relative pronouns are used to connect clauses or phrases to nouns or pronouns. They help provide more information about the noun or pronoun in the sentence.

Common Relative Pronouns

• Who: Refers to people. Example: The teacher, who is very kind, helped me with my homework.
• Whom: Also refers to people, but is used as the object of a verb or preposition. Example: The student to whom I spoke was very polite.
• Whose: Shows possession. Example: The girl whose book was lost is very upset.
• Which: Refers to animals or things. Example: The book, which I borrowed from the library, is due tomorrow.
• That: Can refer to people, animals, or things. It is often used in restrictive clauses (essential information). Example: The car that I want is very expensive.

Usage in Sentences

• Restrictive Clauses: Provide essential information and are not separated by commas. Example: The book that she borrowed was fascinating.
• Non-restrictive Clauses: Provide extra information and are separated by commas. Example: The book, which was on the top shelf, is very old.

Choosing the Right Relative Pronoun

• Use who for subjects and whom for objects (though “whom” is less common in everyday speech).
• Use whose to indicate possession.
• Use which for non-human nouns.
• Use that for essential information about both people and things, often in restrictive clauses.

Let’s practice!🖊️