Relative clauses are often introduced by the following relative pronouns
- acts as the subject or object of the clause
- refer to people
Example:
- Cardi B, who is appearing in a concert in Melbourne this week, is with me in the studio right now. (who acts as a subject in the relative clause ‘who is appearing in a concert in Melbourne this week’)
- Is that the man who we saw at the cinema yesterday? (who acts as an object in the relative clause ‘who we saw at the cinema yesterday’)
- acts as the object of the clause
- refer to people
Example:
- Is that the man whom we saw at the cinema yesterday?
- acts as the subject or object of the clause
- refer to animals and things
Examples:
- Did you see the film which was on TV last night? (which acts as a subject in the relative clause ‘which was on TV last night’)
- There are some very good art books which you should buy. (which acts as an object in the relative clause ‘which you should buy’)
- acts as the subject or object of the clause
- refer to people, animals and things
Examples:
- I help take care of the dog that belongs to my neighbor. (subject)
- Another activity that I have chosen is photography. (object)
- ‘whose’ acts as the possessive adjective
- Together, ‘whose + N’ acts as the subject or object of the clause
- refer to people, animals and things
Examples:
- My next guest on the show is John Travolta, whose career goes back to the early 70s. (whose replaces ‘his’ and whose career acts as the subject of the relative clause)
Relative clauses can also be introduced by the following relative adverbs
- → acts as an adverb of time
- → Example: Do you remember the day when we met? (= … the day on which we met?)
- → acts as an adverb of place
- → Example: This is the place where they filmed KONG. (= …the place in which they filmed KONG)
- → acts as an adverb of reason
- → Example: That’s the reason why he is so popular. (= … the reason for which he is so popular)
Typical errors
When the relative pronoun acts as the subject of the clause, we can’t add another subject:
I admire Jude Law, who always works hard on his films.
I admire Jude Law, who he always works hard on his films.
“whom” is only used in formal situations. In an informal context, we can use “who” as both a subject and object.
Is that the man whom we saw at the cinema yesterday?
Is that the man who we saw at the cinema yesterday?
However, we must use “whom” after a preposition.
Charlie Chaplin was a comic genius to whom all comedians owe a great deal.
In spoken English, we can use “who” in this case but the preposition must be moved to the end of the sentence.
Charlie Chaplin was a comic genius who all comedians owe a great deal to.