Relative Clauses Quiz

1. Can you find the teacher … you
talked to this morning?

a) whose

b) whom

c) when

Answer : b) whom

9. Sam knows a man … brother
works for the president.

a) who

b) whose

c) whom

Answer : b) whose

2. The movie … we saw last week won
three awards.

a) who

b) when

c) which

Answer : c) which

10. Do you know the reason … there
are no penguins at the North Pole?

a) where

b) why

c) whose

Answer : b) why

3. My home is a place … I can come
home and relax after work

a) where

b) when

c) whom

Answer : a) where

11. The people … names are on the
list will stay here.

a) whose

b) where

c) that

Answer : a) whose

4. He had a feeling … something
terrible was going to happen.

a) why

b) who

c) that

Answer : c) that

Relative Clauses Quiz

12. Food … is imported from other
countries is expensive.

a) that

b) where

c) why

Answer : a) that

5. The bad weather is the reason …
I was late for class yesterday.

a) whom

b) when

c) why

Answer : c) why

13. I want to borrow the book … you
bought last month.

a) whom

b) that

c) when

Answer : b) that

6. The cookies … you baked are really
delicious

a) why

b) which

c) when

Answer : b) which

14. Students … study hard get good
grades.

a) when

b) whom

c) who

Answer : c) who

7. My grandfather remembers the time …
there was no television.

a) when

b) where

c) that

Answer : a) when

15. Most of the people … she met
were from Sydney.

a) whom

b) when

c) whose

Answer : a) whom

8. I visited my uncle … lives in a
different city

a) who

b) which

c) when

Answer : a) who

16. I know a great little restaurant
… we can get lunch.

a) that

b) who

c) where

Answer : c) where

There are two types of relative clauses:

1. Defining relative clauses
2. Non-defining relative clauses

DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES

These describe the preceding noun in such a way to distinguish it from other nouns of the same class. A
clause of this kind is essential to clear understanding of the noun.

The boy who was playing is my brother.

A. Subject: who or that

Who is normally used:

The man who robbed you has been arrested.
The girls who serve in the shop are the owner’s daughters.
But that is a possible alternative after all, everyone, everybody, no one, nobody and those:
Everyone who/that knew him liked him.
Nobody who/that watched the match will ever forget it.

B. Object of a verb: whom, who or that

The object form is whom, but it is considered very formal. In spoken English we normally use who

or that (that being more usual than who), and it is still more common to omit the object pronoun
altogether:
The man whom I saw told me to come back today.
The man who I saw told me to come back today.
The man that I saw told me to come back today.
The man I saw told me to come back today.

C. With a preposition: whom or that

In formal English the preposition is placed before the relative pronoun, which must then be put

into the form whom:
The man to whom I spoke…
In informal speech, however, it is more usual to move the preposition to the end of the clause.
Whom then is often replaced by that, but it is still more common to omit the relative altogether:
The man who/whom I spoke to…
The man that I spoke to…
The man I spoke to…

D. Possesssive

Whose is the only possible form:

People whose rents have been raised can appeal.
The film is about a spy whose wife betrays him.

To make short answers:

A. Subject

Either which or that. Which is more formal.

This is the picture which/that caused such a sensation.
The stairs which/that lead to the cellar are rather slippery.

B. Object of a verb

Which or that or no relative at all.

The car which/that I hired broke down.
The car I hired broke down.
Which is hardly ever used after all, everything, little, much, none, no and compounds of no, or
after superlatives. Instead we use that, or omit the relative altogether, if it is the object of a verb:
All the apples that fall are eaten by the pigs.
This is the best hotel (that) I know.

C. Object of a preposition

The formal construction is preposition + which, but it is more usual to move the preposition to

the end of the clause, using which or that or omitting the relative altogether:
The ladder on which I was standing began to slip.
The ladder which/that I was standing on began to slip.
The ladder I was standing on began to slip.

D. Possesssive

Whose + a clause is possible but with + a phrase is more usual:

a house whose walls were made of glass
a house with glass walls

E. Relative adverbs: when, where, why

Note that when can replace in/on which (used of time):

the year when (= in which) he was born
the day when (= in which) they arrived
Where can replace in/at which (used of place):
the hotel where (= in/at which) they were staying
Why can replace for which:
the reason why he refused is…
When, where and why used in this way are called relative adverbs.

A. Subject: who

No other pronoun is possible. Note the commas:

My neighbor, who is very pessimistic, says there will be no apples this year.
Peter, who had been driving all day, suggested stopping at the next town.

B. Object: whom, who

The pronoun cannot be omitted. Whom is the correct form, though who is sometimes used in

conversation:
Peter, whom everyone suspected, turned out to be innocent..

C. Object of a preposition: whom

The pronoun cannot be omitted. The preposition is normally placed before whom:

Mr Jones, for whom I was working, was very generous about overtime payments.
It is however possible to move the preposition to the end of the clause. This is commonly done in
conversation, and who then usually takes the place of whom:
Mr Jones, who I was working for,was very generous about overtime payments.
If the clause contains an expression of time or place, this will remain at the end:
Peter, with whom I played tennis on Sundays, was fitter than me.
could become:
Peter, who/whom I played tennis with on Sundays, was fitter than me.

D. Possesssive: whose

Ann, whose children are at school all day, is trying to get a job.

This is George, whose class you will be taking.

A. Subject: which

That is not used here:

That block, which cost £5 million to build, has been empty for years.
The 8.15 train, which is usually very punctual, was late today.

B. Object: which

That is not used here, and the which can never be omitted.

She gave me this jumper, which she had knitted herself.
These books, which you can get at any bookshop, will give you all the information you
need.

C. Object of a preposition

The preposition comes before which, or (more informally) at the end of the clause:

Ashdown Forest, through which we’ll be driving, isn’t a forest any longer.
Ashdown Forest, which we’ll be driving through, isn’t a forest any longer.
His house, for which he paid £10,000, is now worth £50,000.
His house, which he paid £10,000 for, is now worth £50,000.

D. Possesssive: whose or of which

Whose is generally used both for animals and things. Of which is possible for things, but it is

unusual except in very formal English.
His house, whose windows are all broken, was a depressing sight.
The car, whose handbrake wasn’t very reliable, began to slide backwards.