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Adjective Clause

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Using Adjective Clauses (#1)

 Adjective clauses (relative clauses) are like "sentencesinside sentences." The "job" of adjective clauses is tomodify (describe, identify, make specific) the nounphrases that they follow. In their full forms, adjectiveclauses have several parts: a relative pronoun (or, insome cases, another kind of connecting word), a subject,and a predicate (a verb and, often, other types ofwords which follow it).

In adjective clauses, the relative pronoun is a kind ofconnecting word: it joins the information in the clauseto the noun phrase that it follows. Without the adjectiveclause, the meaning of the modified noun phrase (andof the sentence) is unclear and incomplete.

Examples (full forms):

I know a person who / that can help you.I know a person who(m) / that you can help.I know a person whose advice I can trust.I know a person to whom I can refer you. /I know a person who(m) / that I can refer you to.

I want a car that / which gets good gas mileage.I can't afford the car that / which I really want.

 



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Types of Adjective Clauses

 

1. "Subject Pattern" Clauses

In this type of adjective clause, the relativepronoun is the subject of the clause. Subjectpattern clauses can, however, modify bothsubjects and objects of sentences:

The man who / that talked to uswas very friendly.

Do you know the man who / thattalked to us?

   2. "Object Pattern" Clauses

In this type of adjective clause, the relativepronoun is the object of the clause (butan object pattern clause can modify bothsubjects and objects of sentences):

The people who(m) / that we metseemed very friendly.

The people to whom / that we werespeaking seemed very friendly. /The people who(m) / that we werespeaking to seemed very friendly.

I recently saw the people to whom / thatwe were talking. / I recently saw the peoplewho(m) / that we were talking to.

   3. Clauses Showing Possession

Here, the relative pronoun is possessiveand is attached to another word in theadjective clause:

The people whose names are calledwill work the first shift.

Do you know the student whose brotherwon a gold medal in the Olympics?


Using Adjective Clauses (#2):Types of Adjective Clauses


 Subject Pattern Clauses There are several types of adjective (relative) clauses, eachwith its own rules for form. One type is often referred toas subject pattern clauses because in them, the relativepronoun (the words introducing the clauses) are thegrammatical subjects of the clauses.

Examples:



1. A man spoke to us. The man was wearinga green suit. --->

A man who (that*) was wearing a green suitspoke to us.

The sentence with who has an adjective clause:who was wearing a green suit. In the clause,who is the subject. The clause modifies(describes, explains, specifies) the subject ofthe sentence: a man.

 2. We hadn't met the man. The man waswearing a green suit. --->

We hadn't met the man who (that*) waswearing a green suit.

Again, the sentence with who has an adjectiveclause: who was wearing a green suit. Inthe clause, who is again the subject, but theclause modifies the object of the main sentence:the man.

   3. The new car is parked outside. The new carbelongs to Bob. --->

The new car that (which*) is parked outsidebelongs to Bob.

The sentence with that has an adjective clause:that is parked outside. In the clause, thatis the subject., and the clause modifies thesubject of the main sentence: the new car.

   4. I don't like the new car. The new car isparked outside. --->

I don't like the new car that (which*) isparked outside.

The sentence with that has an adjective clause:that is parked outside. In the clause, thatis the subject, but the clause modifies the objectof the main sentence: the new car.



 

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Special Notes:



1. Adjective clauses come after the nouns thatthey modify:

wrong: A man was wearing a green suitwho spoke to us.

right: A man who was wearing a green suitspoke to us.

wrong: The new car belongs to Bob that isparked outside.

right: The new car that is parked outsidebelongs to Bob.

 2. Do not use both a subject pronoun anda relative pronoun:

wrong: A man who he was wearing a greensuit spoke to us.

right: A man who was wearing a green suitspoke to us.

wrong: The new car that it is parked outsidebelongs to Bob.

right: The new car that is parked outsidebelongs to Bob.

   3. The relative pronouns who and that are usedto refer to people, but who is more common.   4. The relative pronouns that and which areused to refer to things, but that is more common.   5. The relative pronoun that cannot be usedin nonrestrictive clauses (which will beexplained later).   6. Adjective clauses are sometimes describedas dependent clauses because they make nosense by themselves: they need the words ofthe main sentences to which they are attachedin order to show complete thoughts.

Using Adjective Clauses (#3):Types of Adjective Clauses

More on Subject Pattern Clauses

 In addition to the general information that we've alreadyseen, subject pattern adjective (relative) clauses have somespecial characteristics:



1. Reductions: Clauses with BE

When a subject-pattern adjective clausecontains BE, the relative pronoun andBE can often* be omitted:

The woman who is talking to Janetis her sister. ---> The woman talkingto Janet is her sister.

That man who is from Swedenspeaks six languages. ---> That manfrom Sweden speaks six languages.

The people who were injured inthe accident were friends of mine. --->The people injured in the accidentwere friends of mine.

The people who have been electedhave very high qualifications. --->The people elected have veryhigh qualifications.

The skates that are beside the doorbelong to my brother. --->The skates beside the door belong tomy brother.

The meeting that's on Saturdayis very important. --->The meeting on Saturday isvery important.

   2. Rephrasing: Clauses with HAVE

When an adjective clause containsHAVE (meaning "own," "possess,"or "is characterized by"), anotherkind of change is possible:

Do you know anyone who haschange for a dollar? ---> Do youknow anyone with change for a dollar?

There's only one person who hasblond hair in my class. ---> There'sonly one person with blond hairin my class.

I live in the house that has thepalm tree in front. ---> I live in thehouse with the palm tree in front.

She likes food that has lots ofhot spices. ---> She likes foodwith lots of hot spices.

   3. Rephrasing: Clauses with HAVE

When adjective clauses containBE wearingBE wearing can bechanged to in:

The woman who is wearingthe green silk suit isa doctor. -->The woman in the green silk suitis a doctor.

The man who is wearing the redplaid shirt is my brother. --->The man in the red plaid shirtis my brother.



 

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Special Notes:



1. "Dropping" the relative pronoun + BEis most common in these situations:

a. when the verb in the adjective clauseis progressive:

a man who was wearing a green suit --->a man wearing a green suit

the woman who is sitting beside you --->the woman sitting beside you

the dog that is barking so loudly --->the dog barking so loudly

b. when the verb in the adjective clauseis passive:

a watch that was given to meby my grandfather ---> a watchgiven to me by my grandfather

jewelry that was made in Indonesia --->jewelry made in Indonesia

music that was composed by Chopin --->music composed by Chopin

parts that were manufactured in China --->parts manufactured in China

c. when the verb in the adjective clauseis followed by prepositional phrase:

the chair that is next to yours --->the chair next to yours

a businessman who is from Macau --->a businessman from Macau

my appointments that arein the afternoon --->my appointments in the afternoon

Important: The relative pronoun and BEare not "dropped" when BE is followedby an adjective:

people who are lonely /wrong: *people lonely

a movie that is really exciting /wrong: a movie really exciting

   2. Do not change a relative pronoun +HAVE when HAVE does not mean"own," "possess," or "is characterized by":

a thing that has to be done --->wrong: *a thing with done

women who have (="give birth to")premature babies --->wrong: *women with premature babies

people who have a good time --->wrong: *people with a good time (wrong)

Using Adjective Clauses (#4):Types of Adjective Clauses

Object Pattern ClausesIn addition to subject-pattern adjective clauses, there arealso object-pattern ones. They have that name becausein them, the relative pronoun replaces the object ofthe clause.

Examples



1.The person called me. We met the person atJack's party. --->

The person who(m) (that*) we metat Jack's party called me.

The sentence with who(m) has an adjectiveclause: who(m) we met at Jack's party.In the clause, who(m) is the object, but theclause modifies (describes, explains, specifies)the subject of the sentence: the person.

2.I enjoyed talking to the person. We metthe person at Jack's party. --->

I enjoyed talking to the person who(m)(that*) we met at Jack's party.

Again, the sentence with who(m) hasan adjective clause: who(m) we met atJack's party. Who(m) is still the objectof the clause, but here, the clause modifiesthe object of the main sentence: the person.

  3.The trip was quite interesting. I tookthe trip last week. --->

The trip that (which*) I took last weekwas quite interesting.

The sentence with that has an adjectiveclause: that I took last week. In the clause,that is the object and modifies the subjectof the sentence: the trip.

  4.I enjoyed the trip. I took the triplast week. --->

I enjoyed the trip that (which*)I took last week.

The sentence with that has an adjectiveclause: that I took last week. In the clause,that is still the object. The clause modifiesthe object of the sentence: the trip.



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Special Notes:



1.Adjective clauses come after the nouns thatthey modify:

wrong: *The person called me who(m)we met at Jack's party.

right: The person who(m) we metat Jack's party called me.

wrong: *The trip was quite interestingthat I took last week.

right: The trip that I took last weekwas quite interesting.

2.Do not use both an object pronoun anda relative pronoun in an adjective clause:

wrong: *The person who(m) we met himat Jack's party called me.

right: The person who(m) we met atJack's party called me.

wrong: *I enjoyed the trip that I took itlast week.

right: I enjoyed the trip that I took last week.

  3.The relative pronouns whom and that areused to refer to people, but whom is morecommon. Also, whom is used mostly inwriting and very formal speech, but whois used for both subjects and objects ineveryday conversation and casual speech.

The relative pronouns that and whichare used to refer to things, but that ismore common.

Using Adjective Clauses (#5):Types of Adjective Clauses

More on Object Pattern ClausesLike subject-pattern adjective clauses, object-patternclauses also have some special characteristics:



1. Object Relative Pronouns: People

For people, who(m) or that can be used;both are common. However, whom isused mostly for very formal speaking orwriting. For other uses (including mostspeaking), who or that is used. The onlydifference between who in subject- andin object-pattern clauses is in word order:

That's the person who was talking to us.(subject pattern)

That's the person who we were talking to.(object pattern)

   2. Object Relative Pronouns: Things

For things, that or which can be used;both are common:

Is this the book that which you wanted?

When do I have to repay the moneythat which I borrowed?

   3. Omitting Relative Pronouns

In object-pattern adjective clauses,relative pronouns are often omitted,particularly in speaking:

That's the person who(m) thatwe were talking to. --->That's the person we were talking to.

The person who(m) that we met atJack's party called me. ---> The personwe met at Jack's party called me.

Is this the book that / whichyou wanted? ---> Is this the bookyou wanted?

When do I have to repay the moneythat / which I borrowed? ---> When doI have to repay the money I borrowed?

   4. Adjective Clauses as Objectsof Prepositions: People

Relative pronouns for people can be theobjects of prepositions. In this situation,the word order is different in formal and"everyday" English. Also, only whom (notwho or that) can be used to refer to peoplein the formal version:

The woman is right overth ere. You were talking aboutthe woman. --->

formal: The woman about whom youwere talking is right over there.

"everyday": The woman who / thatyou were talking about is right over there.(or The woman you were talking aboutis right over there.)

wrong: *The woman about who youwere talking is right over there.

wrong: *The woman about that youwere talking is right over there.

   5. Adjective Clauses as Objectsof Prepositions: Things

Relative pronouns for things can also bethe objects of prepositions. In this situation,the word order is also different in formaland "everyday" English. Also, only which(not that) can be used to refer to things inthe formal version:

The book is rather expensive.He referred to the book. --->

formal: The book to which he referredis rather expensive.

"everyday": The book that / which hereferred to is rather expensive. (or The bookhe referred to is rather expensive.)

wrong: *The book to that he referred israther expensive.



Using Adjective Clauses (#6):Types of Adjective Clauses

Possessive Adjective ClausesIn addition to subject- and object-pattern adjectiveclauses, there are also adjective clauses with whose.In clauses of this type, whose shows possession.It is always combined with a noun or noun phrase.

Examples:



1. The author is Jonathan Kellerman. She likesthe author's books best. --->

The author whose books she likes best isJonathan Kellerman.

The sentence with whose has an adjectiveclause: whose books she likes best. In theclause, whose is the relative pronoun and isused with books. The clause modifies thesubject of the sentence: the author.

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The people will be glad to help you.The people's names are on this list. --->

The people whose names are on thislist will be glad to help you.

Here, the adjective clause is whosenames are on this list. The adjectiveclause modifies the subject of the mainsentence: the people.

   2. I enjoyed discussing the author. We hadjust read the author's latest book. --->

I enjoyed discussing the author whoselatest book we had just rea d.

Again, the sentence with whose has anadjective clause: whose latest book wehad just read. The clause modifies theobject of the main sentence: the author.

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I've contacted all the people. The people'snames are on this list. --->

I've contacted all the people whose namesare on this list.

Here, the adjective clause is whose namesare on this list. The clause modifies theobject of the main sentence: the people.



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Special Notes



1. Do not use a subject relative pronounand a "regular" possessive "pronoun inan adjective clause:

wrong:*The author who / that his books shelikes best is Jonathan Kellerman.

wrong:*The people who / that their names areon this list will be glad to help you.

wrong:*I enjoyed discussing the author who / thathis latest book we had just read.

wrong:*I've contacted all the people who / thattheir names are on this list.

wrong:*She just bought a computer that / whichits processor speed is 450 mhz.

   2. Whose clauses for Things

There is a problem when you want tomake a possessive adjective clause forthings--because English does not havea special relative pronoun for this situation:

She just bought a computer. The computer'sprocessor speed is 450 mhz. --->

She just bought a computer ??? processorspeed is 450 mhz.

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Important: Because English does nothave a possessive relative pronoun thatrefers to things, whose must be used:

She just bought a computer whoseprocessor speed is 450 mhz.

Bill has a car whose color is blue.

Sentences with adjective clauses like theabove are awkward because whose seemsmore appropriate for people than for things.You can avoid this problem by rephrasingthe adjective clause:

She just bought a computer which / thathas a processor speed of 450 mhz.

Bill has a blue car.

Using Adjective Clauses (#7):Types of Adjective Clauses

Title.

Title.

Restrictive / Nonrestrictive Clauses

 We have already seen that adjective clauses can beclassified into subject-pattern clauses, object-patternclauses, possessive clauses, and clauses with whereand when. They can also be classified in another way:into restrictive and non-restrictive clauses.

 

Restrictive Clauses

An adjective clause is restrictive if it is needed toidentify (specify, clarify) which noun phrase is beingtalked about in the sentence that contains the clause.If the clause is restrictive, it it will answer the question"Which (noun) _____ ?"

Examples



1. The person (who[m]) Judy met atKen's party called her last night.

A: Some person called Judy last night.

B: Which person called Judy last night?

A: The person (who[m] / that) she metat Ken's party.

This clause is restrictive because it's neededto identify "the person."

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2. The person who called yesterday will callagain this afternoon.

A: Some person called again this afternoon.

B: Which person called again this afternoon?

A: The person who (that) called yesterday.

This clause is also restrictive; again, it's neededto specify "the person."

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3. The soup that (which) Sally madeis too salty.

A: The soup is too salty.

B: Which soup?

A: The soup (that / which) Sally made.

This clause is restrictive, too: it shows which soupis being referred to.

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4. The car that's (which is) parked besideJoe's belongs to Tina.

A: One of those cars belongs to Tina.

B: Which one?

A: The one that's (which is) parked beside Joe's.

Once again, the clause is restrictive; it's necessaryinformation if A wants B to know which car she isreferring to.

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Non-Restrictive Clauses

An adjective clause is non-restrictive if the clauseis not needed to identify which noun phrase is beingtalked about. This does not mean that the clauseshould be omitted from the sentence. Instead, itmeans that the clause gives important information,but the information is extra.

Examples



1. Jim Peterson, who(m) Judy met atKen's party, called her last night.

This clause is non-restrictive. It's not neededto identify the person who called Judy becausethe person is identified by name: Jim Peterson.

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2. Your mother, who called yesterday,called again this afternoon.

This clause is also non-restrictive. It's not neededto show which person called again this afternoon;your mother makes the person's identity very clear.

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3. Sally's vegetable beef soup, which is inthe big white bowl, is too salty.

The clause inside the commas is not needed to showwhich soup is being referred to because the modifiersSally'svegetableand beef make this very clear.Knowing that this soup is in the big white bowl is extrainformation, so the clause "which is in the big whitebowl" is non-restrictive.

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4. Tina's new car, which she boughtlast week,is a Corvette.

The clause inside the commas is also non-restrictive.It's not needed to to show which car is being referred tobecause the modifiers Tina's and new make this very clear. For this reason, the clause "which she bought lastweek" is extra information,

Using Adjective Clauses (#9):Types of Adjective Clauses

Restrictive / Nonrestrictive Clauses (#2) There are two important things to remember aboutrestrictive and non-restrictive adjective clauses: theirpunctuation and the relative pronouns that they use.In today's Hint, we'll take a look at punctuation andrelative pronouns used in non-restrictive clauses.

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Non-Restrictive Clauses: Punctuation

 Because non-restrictive adjective clauses give extrainformation, we "set them apart" from the mainsentence by using commas:

Jim Petersen, who(m) Judy met at Ken's party,called her last night.

Last night Judy got a call from Jim Peterson,who(m) she met at Ken's party.

Your mother, who called yesterday, called againthis afternoon.

This afternoon you had a call from your mother,who also called yesterday.

Hamburgers, which are actually made from beef,are popular in the U.S.A.

One popular food in the U.S.A. is hamburgers,which are actually made from beef.

Saguaros, which are tall cacti with "arms,"are common in Arizona.

Among the common cacti in Arizona are saguaros,which are tall and have "arms."

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Special Note:

Do not use commas in restrictive adjective clauses:

wrong:*The person, who(m) Judy met at Ken's party,called her last night.

wrong:*This afternoon you got a call from a woman,who also called you yesterday.

wrong:*The cacti, which are tall and have "arms,"are common in Arizona.

 

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Non-Restrictive Clauses: Pronouns

 Most relative pronouns can be used in bothrestrictive and non-restrictive adjective clauses,but one cannot:

used in both restrictive and non-restrictiveclauses: who, whom, which, whose

used only in restrictive clauses: that

Examples:

wrong:*Jim Petersen, that Judy met at Ken's party,called her last night.

right:Jim Petersen, who(m) Judy met at Ken's party,called her last night.

wrong:*This afternoon you had a call from your mother,that also called yesterday.

right:This afternoon you had a call from your mother,who also called yesterday.

wrong:*Hamburgers, that are actually made from beef,are popular in the U.S.A.

right:Hamburgers, which are actually made from beef,are popular in the U.S.A.

wrong:*Among the common cacti in Arizona are saguaros,that are tall and have "arms."

right:Among the common cacti in Arizona are saguaros,which are tall and have "arms."

Using Adjective Clauses (#10):

Avoid these Mistakes!

Part 1

 Because adjective (relative) clauses are very useful ingiving descriptive information in both speaking andwriting, they are something you will hear, see, and wantto use in English. You should, however, be careful inusing them. Be especially careful not to make thesecommon mistakes:

1. Don't confuse who and whom.

The relative pronouns who and whom are oftenespecially confusing for learners of English--particularlysince who often replaces whom in non-formal speakingand writing.

Remember that in formal speaking and writing, who isfor subjects and whom is for objects. Also rememberthat in non-formal speaking and writing, who can beused for whom, but whom cannot be used for who*.

Examples

Bob is the person who is talking. (correct)

Bob is the person whom is talking. (incorrect)

Bob is the person to whom we were listening.(correct--formal)

Bob is the person whom we were listening to.(correct--less formal)

Bob is the person who we were listening to.(correct--non-formal)

* Some people feel that whom "sounds better" thanwho because it is more formal. Remember that whomonly sounds better if it is used correctly!!

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2. Be careful with word order.

Word order is often a problem with adjective clausesif a sentence has other modifiers after the noun phrasethat is being described.

Remember that in clear speaking and writing (especiallyin clear writing), the adjective clause comes just afterthe noun phrase that it modifies. It can be a problem,however, to know where to put the adjective clauseand where to put other modifiers. It may, in fact, benecessary to write sentences with adjective clausesand other modifiers (particularly more than oneadjective clause) in a different way in order to makethem clear.

Examples

Judy is the girl who has blond hair who is standingbeside Bill. (confusing)

Judy is the girl who is standing beside Bill who hasblond hair. (confusing)

Judy is the girl with blond hair who is standingbeside Bill. (confusing)

Judy is the girl who is standing beside Bill withblond hair. (confusing)

Judy is the blond-haired girl who is standing besideBill. (rewritten--and clear)

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Jack is a person who is in my class who(m) I likea lot. (confusing)

Jack is a person who is in my class I like a lot.(confusingawkward)

Jack is a person who(m) I like a lot who is inmy class. (confusing)

Jack is a person I like a lot who is in my class.(confusing)

I like Jack, who is in my class, a lot.(rewritten--and clear)

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Ana has two children whose names are Felipe andLuz who are in junior high school. (confusingawkward)

Ana has two children who are in junior high schoolwhose names are Felipe and Luz. (confusingawkward)

Ana has two children, Felipe and Luz, who are injunior high school. (rewritten--and clear)

Using Adjective Clauses (#11):

Avoid these Mistakes!

Part 2

 Adjective clauses are very useful in both speaking andwriting, but you should be careful with them. We'vealready seen two errors that are common when usingadjective clauses. Here are two more:

 

1. Don't use personal pronouns and relativepronouns to refer to the same word.

Relative pronouns are used to make a connection toa noun phrase. The main noun in the noun phrasecan be a subject, object, or possessive and it can bereplaced by a subject, object, or possessive pronoun.There are also subject, object, and possessive formsfor relative pronouns. Don't connect to the mainnoun twice by using both personal pronouns andrelative pronouns.

Examples

Bob is the person *who he was talking to meat the baseball game. (wrong)

Bob is the person who was talking to meat the baseball game. (right)

Bob is the person *who(m) I was talking to himat the baseball game. (wrong)

Bob is the person who(m) I was talking toat the baseball game. (right)

Bob is the person to whom I was talkingat the baseball game. (right--formal)

Bob is the person *who his brother was pitchingin the second inning. (wrong)

Bob is the person whose brother was pitchingin the second inning. (right)

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2. Do not confuse whose with who's or withwho he/she is.

Whose is a possessive relative pronoun. Who'sor who he/she is may have similar sounds, butthey have very different grammar and meanings.

Examples

Judy is the one *who her car was stolenlast night. (wrong)

Judy is the one *who's car was stolenlast night. (wrong)

Judy is the one whose car was stolenlast night. (right)

No, I don't know anyone *who his nameis Jack Spencer. (wrong)

No, I don't know anyone *who's nameis Jack Spencer. (wrong)

No, I don't know anyone whose nameis Jack Spencer. (right)



Using Adjective Clauses (#12):

Avoid these Mistakes!

Part 3

 Although adjective clauses are very useful in both speakingand writing, you should be careful with them. Here are twomore common errors that you should avoid:

 

1. Do not use who after prepositions.

When relative pronouns are directly after prepositions(a common pattern in formal speaking and writing),object forms are needed. Because who is a subjectform, it is noticeably incorrect in this situation:whom should be used.

Examples

Bob is the person to *who I gave the report. (wrong)

Bob is the person to whom I gave the report. (right)

Is Julie the person by *who the report was written? (wrong)

Is Julie the person by whom the report was written? (right)

That letter begins "To *who it may concern." (wrong)

That letter begins "To whom it may concern." (right)

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In situations that are not formal, the relative pronoun isoften separated from the preposition. When this happens,who is often used instead of whom:

Bob is the person who I gave the report to. (common)

Is Julie the person who the report was written by? (common)

Remember: Sentences like the above are not acceptablein formal situations.

 

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2. Do not use prepositions with where or when.Instead, use which.

When where and when are used in adjective clauses,they are not used with prepositions. The relativepronoun which may be used in this situation, however.

Examples

That's the room in *where I have class. (wrong)

That's the room where I have class. (right)

That's the room in which I have class. (right)

Is this the city in *where you were born? (wrong)

Is this the city where you were born? (right)

Is this the city in which you were born? (right)

Tomorrow is the day on *when he has hisjob interview. (wrong)

Tomorrow is the day when he has hisjob interview. (right)

Tom orrow is the day on which he has hisjob interview. (right)

1990 is the year in *when they were married. (wrong)

1990 is the year when they were married. (right)

1990 is the year in which they were married. (right)

Title.

Avoid these Mistakes!

Part 4

 We have seen that you should be careful about severalpossible types of errors with adjective clauses. Hereare two more things to avoid:

 

1. Be careful with punctuation. Do not use commaswith restrictive adjective clauses.

Some adjective clauses give information which isnecessary in specifically identifying nouns. Theseclauses are restrictive. Other adjective clauses giveinformation which provides extra information, butwhich is not necessary in specifically identifyingnouns. These clauses are nonrestrictive.

Use commas with nonrestrictive adjective clauses.Do not use commas with restrictive adjective clauses.

Examples

Do you know the *pages, which we're supposed toread tonight?

wrong: The adjective clause is neededto show which pages are being talkedabout. A comma should not be used.

Do you know the pages which we're supposed toread tonight? (right)

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Joe has a *watch, which once belonged tohis grandfather.

wrong: The adjective clause is neededto show which watch is being talkedabout. A comma should not be used.

Joe has a watch which once belonged tohis grandfather. (right)

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Dr. *Schnabel who teaches my physics classwas born in Germany.

wrong: The adjective clause is notneeded to show which person is beingtalked about because the name makesthis clear. Two commas should be used.

Dr. Schnabel, who teaches my physics class,was born in Germany. (right)

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Bob's *wife who is a nurse is named Gloria.

wrong: Because Bob has only onewife, the information is extra. Here,a comma should be used.

Bob's wife, who is a nurse, is named Gloria. (right)

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Bob's sister who is a nurse is named Angie.

right: If Bob has more than one sister,this sentence is correct.

Bob's sister, who is a nurse, is named Angie.

right: If Bob has only one sister,this sentence is correct.

 

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2. Do not use that in nonrestrictive adjectiveclauses. Instead, use which.

 

In restrictive adjective clauses, both that and who canbe used to refer to people, and both that and whichcan be used to refer to things. This is not true fornonrestrictive adjective clauses, however: that cannotbe used. Instead, use who or which.

Examples

The professor who teaches my physics classwas born in Germany. (right)

The professor that teaches my physics classwas born in Germany. (right)

Dr. *Schnabel, that teaches my physics class,was born in Germany. (wrong)

Dr. Schnabel, who teaches my physics class,was born in Germany. (right)

___________________________________________< /P>

 

Gerunds are verbs which are used as nouns. (right)

Gerunds are verbs that are used as nouns. (right)

Gerunds, that are verbs which are used as nouns,end in -ing. (wrong)

Gerunds, that are verbs that are used as nouns,end in -ing. (wrong)

Gerunds, which are verbs that are used as nouns,end in -ing. (right)

Gerunds, which are verbs which are used as nouns,end in -ing. (right)

Note: The second which in the sentence above iscorrect but awkward; for variety, that should beused instead

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