Use relative pronouns: who, whom, whose, which, and that
Key Notes:
- What Are Relative Pronouns?
- Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses and connect them to nouns or pronouns in a sentence. They help provide additional information about those nouns.
- Common Relative Pronouns:
- Who: Refers to people and is used as the subject of a verb.
- Whom: Refers to people and is used as the object of a verb or preposition.
- Whose: Indicates possession and shows that something belongs to someone.
- Which: Refers to animals or things and is used for non-defining clauses (providing extra information).
- That: Refers to people, animals, or things and is used for defining clauses (essential information).
- Using “Who”:
- Who is used to refer to the subject of a sentence or clause.
- Example: “The girl who won the race is my friend.”
- Here, “who” identifies “the girl” as the subject performing the action of winning.
- Using “Whom”:
- Whom is used to refer to the object of a verb or preposition.
- Example: “The person whom I saw at the park is my neighbor.”
- In this example, “whom” refers to “the person” receiving the action of being seen.
- Using “Whose”:
- Whose shows possession.
- Example: “The boy whose bicycle was stolen is sad.”
- “Whose” indicates that the bicycle belongs to “the boy.”
- Using “Which”:
- Which is used for non-defining clauses that provide additional information about animals or things.
- Example: “The book, which is on the table, is interesting.”
- “Which” adds information about “the book” but doesn’t change the main point of the sentence.
- Using “That”:
- That is used for defining clauses that provide essential information about people, animals, or things.
- Example: “The dog that barked last night kept me awake.”
- “That” identifies the specific dog being referred to, essential for understanding the sentence.
- Differences Between the Pronouns:
- Who and whom both refer to people, but who is for subjects, and whom is for objects.
- Whose indicates possession.
- Which is for non-defining information about things, while that is for defining information.
- Common Mistakes to Avoid:
- Using who instead of whom when referring to the object. Remember: “I saw him” helps you decide (use whom).
- Confusing which and that: Use which for non-defining clauses and that for defining clauses.
- Practice Identifying Relative Pronouns:
- Look at sentences and identify the relative pronouns. Discuss their functions and what nouns they refer to, helping to clarify their meanings in context.
Let’s practice!🖊️
