Relative Clauses

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 4

Grammar: Relative clauses

Relative clauses zijn betrekkelijke bijzinnen. Er staan betrekkelijke voornaamwoorden in: who/whom/whose, which/that, when/where/why

Er zijn 2 verschillende soorten relative clauses:

1. defining relative clause
   
2. non-defining relative clauses

Defining relative clause

• Geeft informatie die je nodig hebt om de hoofdzin te begrijpen. De info staat niet tussen komma's: The man who was involved in that accident in Church street is my uncle.
  
• Je kan 'who' en 'which' vervangen met 'that': The man that was involved in that accident in Church street is my uncle.
  
• Als het niet het onderwerp van de zin is (lijd. vw/meew. vw) dan mag je het betrekkelijke voornaamwoord eruit laten: The man (who/that) my aunt kissed at the party is her neighbour. 

Non-defining relative clause

• Staat altijd tussen 2 komma's omdat het extra informatie geeft die niet belangrijk is om de hoofdzin te begrijpen: Napoleon, who liked chocolate, lost the battle of Waterloo.
  
• Je kan 'who' en 'which' niet vervangen met 'that': Napoleon, that liked chocolate, lost the battle of Waterloo.☹
  
• Je kan het betrekkelijke voornaamwoord niet weglaten omdat het de positie van onderwerp inneemt: Napoleon, liked chocolate, lost the battle of Waterloo. ☹

Is this a defining or non-defining relative clause:
That's the man whose daughter has won the lottery.

1. defining
2. non-defining

Is this a defining or non-defining relative clause:
The painting, which was finished in 1850, is one of the most representative works of that time.

1. defining
2. non-defining

Joseph Conrad was a Polish seaman ---- became famous as an English writer.

1. which
2. that
3. who
4. whose

No one to ---- I have spoken is able to answer my question.

1. who
2. whom
3. which
4. that

My sister Ann had always wanted to go to a place ---- she could speak her native tongue.

1. when
2. which
3. where
4. why

The 19th century artist, ---- name I could not remember, was one of the best I had ever seen.

1. whose
2. whom
3. who
4. that

Social media networks are an excellent tool ---- you can use to promote your business.

1. which
2. who
3. that
4. --

We need to find an empty building ---- we can hide for a couple of days.

1. when
2. where
3. which
4. that

Most of the questions ---- were raised in the class were left unanswered.

1. when
2. that
3. why
4. which

Who, whom, whose

• Who gebruiken we als onderwerp of lijd vw: The woman who I saw is Margaret.
• Whom gebruik je na een voorzetsel (to/on/at etc): The woman to whom I gave a rose is my friend Margaret.
• Whose gebruik je voor bezittelijke vormen: The woman whose friend is called Margaret bought a rose.

Whom

In formeel Engels kan 'whom' worden gebruikt in plaats van 'who' wanneer het een lijdend vw of meewerkend vw betreft:

• The president whom we address with "Sir" must take the initiative to start a conversation.
• The Queen whom I sent a letter replied within a week. (to who)

Whose

Whose wordt voor zowel mensen/dieren als dingen gebruikt en verwijst dus naar bezit:

• The car whose door had been damaged in the accident was towed away.
• A famous professor, whose daughter is my pupil, gave a lecture at our school.

When, where, why

When, where en why kunnen gebruikt worden na een zelfstandig naamwoord (noun):

• When verwijst naar tijd: Easter is the time when we eat many chocolate eggs.
• Where verwijst naar locatie: The park where we played football when we were kids will be closed.
• Why verwijst naar reden: Nobody can tell me the reason why they left early.

Add together to make a relative sentence:
I sent an email to my brother. He lives in Australia. (who)

Add together to make a relative sentence:
I dropped a glass. The glass was new. (that)

Add together to make a relative sentence:
He got the job. This surprised everyone. (which)

Add together to make a relative sentence:
The mobile phone can't be fixed. The mobile phone is broken. (which)

Extra grammar practice

Do the following exercise for some extra practice before moving on to the exercises in the book (unit 17.2)

Fill in the right relative pronoun. Give all possibilities and add commas when necessary.  

01. The boy … moved to America was in my sister’s class. 

02. The bike … was stolen from our shed was very expensive. 

03. Her hair,… was dyed blue, was tied in a ponytail. 

04. John … is in love with Jenny has quite a few insufficient marks. 

05. They met in the park … there is a lake and a tearoom. 

06. He cannot remember the day … he moved to Zwolle.  

key

1. The boy who / that… moved to America was in my sister’s class. 
2. The bike …which / that was stolen from our shed was very expensive. 
3. Her hair, which was dyed blue ,was tied in a ponytail. 
4. John , who… is in love with Jenny,  has quite a few insufficient marks. 
5. They met in the park where… there is a lake and a tearoom.  
6. He cannot remember the day when… he moved to Zwolle.  

Make one sentence using a relative clause  

  

01.  James is very tall. James has looked into the rejected proposal. 

02.  The man is standing on the corner. The man is an undercover cop. 

03.  My sister is interested in science. She has just moved to Silicon Valley.  04.  The wildlife park is very famous. Two people were attacked by lions in the   wildlife park. 

05.  His wife cried a lot on the day. He left for Afghanistan.  

key

1. James is very tall. James has looked into the rejected proposal. 

James, who is very tall, has looked into the rejected proposal 

2. The man is standing on the corner. The man is an undercover cop. 

The man who/that is standing on the corner is an undercover cop.  

3. My sister is interested in science. She has just moved to Silicon Valley. 

My sister, who is interested in science, has just moved to Silicon Valley.  

4. The wildlife park is very famous. Two people were attacked by lions in the   wildlife park. 

Two people were attacked in the wildlife park which/ that is very famous. 

5. His wife cried a lot on the day. He left for Afghanistan. 

His wife cried a lot on the day when he left for Afghanistan.