Relative clauses: when to use who, which, whose or that?

The relative clauses or relative clauses in English are subordinate clauses used to provide information about a noun (whether a person, a thing, or a place) that was mentioned before. They are always preceded by a relative pronoun (who, which, whose, that). For example: The woman quien she lives next door she has two dogs./ The lady who lives next door to her has two dogs.

The relative clauses They fulfill the function of an adjective phrase, since they modify the noun that precedes them. By using the relative clausesIt avoids forming two sentences, uniting the information provided by the subordinate clause to the main clause. For example: The woman has two dogs. (main clause) The woman lives next door.(subordinate clause)

There are two types of relative clauses in English:

• Defining relative clauses. The defining relative clauses(restrictive relative clauses or specifying relative clauses in English) are those that restrict or limit the scope of the antecedent to express what or who is being referred to. They are necessary to understand the main sentence, since without them it would not make sense. For example:
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  I have a friend quien lives in London. / I have a friend who lives in London.
• Non-defining relative clauses. The non-defining relative clauses(non-restrictive relative clauses or explanatory relative clauses in English) are those that provide additional or “extra” information about the person or thing referred to. They are enclosed in commas because they are clarifying and are not necessary to understand the meaning of the main sentence. For example: His house of him, which is huge, costs a lot of money. / His house, which is huge, costs a lot of money.

• It may help you: Sentences in English

Relative pronouns in English

Relative pronouns in English or relative pronouns are: who, which, that, whose and who. They head the relative clauses and are used to refer to something or someone previously mentioned, and thus avoid repetition:

Relative pronoun	Use	Example
quien what, who, who	It is used to refer to people.	The girl quien She is wearing the red dress is my sister. The girl wearing the red dress is my sister.
which that, the/which, the/which	It is used to refer to things or situations.	The car which was stolen is yours. The car that was stolen is yours.
that that	It is used to refer to both people and things.	The book that I slow you is good. The book I lent you is good.
whose whose, whose	It is used to refer to the belonging of people and things.	The car, whose owner is my neighbor, is parked in front of my house. The car, owned by my neighbor, is parked in front of my house.
who to whom/it is, for whom/it is, whose/it is, of which, of which	It is used to refer to the person on whom the action falls. It is only used in very formal English depending on object of prepositions and verbs.	The man to who I was speaking was very helpful. The man he was talking to was very helpful.

There are also relative adverbs:

• where(where, in which). It is used to refer to a place. For example: We know a restaurant where you can eat very good Indian food./ We know a restaurant where you can eat very good Indian food.
• when(when, in which). It is used to refer to time. For example: There was a time when they were happy. / There was a time when they were happy.
• why(that's why, why). It is used to refer to the reason for an action. For example: Do you know the reason why have I left? / Do you know the reason why he left?

To take into account: To refer to animals, we use quienIf you know the name and whichif you don't know it.

• See more at: English pronouns

Typesrelative clauses

There are important differences that must be taken into account between the definingand the non-defining relative clauses:

Defining relative clauses	Non-defining relative clauses
They are necessary to understand the sentence. The man quien called didn't say his name. The man he called did not say his name. (specifies who is being talked about)	They are not necessary to understand the sentence. My brother, quien is a doctor, lives in Mexico. My brother, who is a doctor, lives in Mexico. (you know who you are talking about; It only provides extra information)
They do not have commas.	They go between commas.
pronouns are used who, whichand that, depending on the context. We need someone quien / that she speaks English. We need someone who speaks English. Ella she works for a company which / that she produces software. She works for a company that produces software.	Only pronouns are used quienandwhich. You can not use that. John, quien speaks English, will help us. John, who speaks English, will help us. (And not: John, who speaks English, …)
Pronouns can be omitted who, that and which when the relative clauserefers to the object of the sentence (which receives the action) and not the subject (which does the action). The person I want to speak to is Mary. The person I want to speak to is Mary. (Equals: The person that / who I want to speak to is Mary.)	Pronouns can never be omitted quienand which. I saw “All Quiet on the Western Front”, which Joe had recommended. I saw “All Quiet Up Front,” which Joe had recommended to me. (And not: I saw “All Quiet on the Western Front”, Joe recommended.)

To take into account:

• In informal and neutral English it is usually used that in replacement of quien and which, in the defining relative clauses (the boy that …, the school that …)
• When the relative clauserefers to the object, the omission of relative pronouns is preferred and not their inclusion (the food I ate…, the girl he loves…). If the verb requires a preposition, it goes at the end of the clause (the person I was talking to …, the hotel we stayed at …)
• Used whichpreceded by a comma to add an opinion or value judgment about the idea just mentioned. For example: Peter came early, which It was hard to believe.
• can never be used quein the relative clauses. For example: All (that / which) I heard was false.(And not: All what I heard was false.)

Sentences with relative clauses

1. The man who is wearing the white shirt He is my teacher.
   The man wearing the white shirt is my teacher.
2. The cake which my mom baked for my birthday It was delicious.
   The cake my mom made for my birthday was delicious.
3. The movie that we watched last night It was really good.
   The movie we saw last night was very good.
4. The food we ordered it was cold.
   The food we ordered was cold.
5. Buenos Aires, which is the capital of Argentina, is an enormous city.
   Buenos Aires, which is the capital of Argentina, is a huge city.
6. Colin, who is my brother, is organizing the party.
   Colin, who is my brother, is organizing the party.
7. The book which I borrowed from the library It's due next week.
   The book I borrowed from the library is due next week.
8. I liked the boy that you introduced me to.
   I liked the boy you introduced me to.
9. An architect is a person who designs houses and buildings.
   An architect is a person who designs houses and buildings.
10. The hotel room, which overlooked the harbor, it was beautiful.
    The hotel room, which overlooked the harbor, was beautiful.
11. We went to the hotel that you had mentioned.
    We went to the hotel you had mentioned.
12. The boy who lives down the road is my best friend.
    The boy who lives down the street is my best friend.
13. The restaurant we ate at last night it was excellent.
    The restaurant we ate at last night was excellent.
14. The jacket that I bought on sale it was a great deal.
    The jacket I bought on sale was a bargain.
15. The person who called It was very friendly.
    The person she called was very nice.
16. My sister lives in Glasgow, which is in Scotland.
    My sister lives in Glasgow, which is in Scotland.
17. The house we live in you have a big backyard.
    The house we live in has a large backyard.
18. The doctor who saw you was very patient.
    The doctor who saw you was very patient.
19. The book which I recommended to my friend was a bestseller.
    The book I recommended to my friend was a best seller.
20. The person who inspired him was his father.
    The person who inspired him was his father.

Follow with:

• “Reported Speech" in English
• Passive voice in English
• Questions in English
• “Indirect questions" in English
• “Future time clauses" in English

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