defining relative clauses

“DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES”

2014

04/18/23 copyright 2006 www.brainybetty.com 2

We use relative clauses to give additional information about something without starting another sentence.

By combining sentences with a relative clause, your text becomes more fluent and you can avoid repeating certain words.


How to form a Defining Relative Clause

Imagine, a girl is talking to Tom.You want to know who she is and aska friend whether he knows her.

You could say:


“A girl is talking to Tom. Do you know the girl?”

That sounds rather complicated, doesn't it?

It would be easier with a relative clause: you put both pieces of information into one sentence.

Start with the most important thing – you want to know who the girl is.


“Do you know the girl …”

As your friend cannot know which girl you are talking about, you need to put in the additional information – the girl is talking to Tom.


Use “the girl” only in the first part of the sentence, in the second part replace it with the relative pronoun (for people, use the relative pronoun “who“). So the final sentence is:

“Do you know the girl whowho is talking to Tom?”


In other words...

It is necessary to use relative pronouns to join two sentences and at the end we'll have a relative clause.


THE RELATIVE PRONOUNS

The relative pronouns are those words that help us to join two sentences by replacing another one.

Let's see them...


The relative pronoun WHO / THAT means in Spanish quién o quiénes. It is used for people.

Example:

I told you about the woman who / that

lives next door.


The relative pronoun WHERE means in Spanish dónde. It is used for places.

Example:

This is the place where I was born.


The relative pronoun THAT means in Spanish el cual o qué. It is used for things or animals.

Example:

He couldn’t read the book that I bought him.


LET'S PRACTICE!!!


Complete with defining relative pronouns.

1. This is the bank ______ I was robbed yesterday.

2. The boy _____ is in my class was in the bank at that time.

3. The man _____robbed the bank had two pistols.

4. He wore a mask _____made him look like Mickey Mouse.


1. This is the bank where I was robbed yesterday.

2. The boy who / that is in my class was in the bank at that time.

3. The man who / that robbed the bank had two pistols.

4. He wore a mask that made him look like Mickey Mouse.


5. He came with a friend_____ waited outside in the car.

6. The woman _____gave him the money was young.

7. The bag _____contained the money was yellow.

8. The people _____were in the bank were very frightened.

9. Tocopilla was the place _____ Alexis Sanchez was born.


5. He came with a friend who / that waited outside in the car.

6. The woman who / that gave him the money was young.

7. The bag that contained the money was yellow.

8. The people who / that were in the bank were very frightened.

9. Tocopilla was the place where Alexis Sanchez was born.


10. The woman ______ was crying there tried to calm herself.

11. The car _____ the bank robbers escaped in was orange.

12. The San Francisco banks _____ I had my money fell down .

13. The man ______ drove the car was nervous.

14. He didn't wait at the traffic lights_____ were red.


10. The woman who / that was crying there tried to calm herself.

11. The car that the bank robbers

escaped in was orange.12. The San Francisco banks where I had my

money fell down .13. The man who / that drove the car was nervous.

14. He didn't wait at the traffic lights that were red.


Material created by

Danitza Lazcano Flores

Teacher of English

Master in Education

and

Educational Counselor