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Relative clauses are a type of subordinate clause that provides additional information about a noun in the main clause. They are introduced by relative pronouns (who, whom, whose, which, that) or relative adverbs (where, when, why).
Relative clauses are used to add descriptive or identifying information about a noun in the main clause. They follow the noun they describe and provide essential or non-essential information.
Essential relative clause: The book that I bought is on the table.
Non-essential relative clause: My sister, who lives in Paris, is visiting next week.
Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses and refer back to a noun or pronoun in the main clause. The choice of relative pronoun depends on the role of the noun in the relative clause and whether it refers to people or things.
Who: Refers to people (subject) - He is the man who helps us.
Whom: Refers to people (object) - She is the woman whom I met.
Whose: Indicates possession - This is the house whose roof is leaking.
Which: Refers to things or animals - This is the car which I bought.
That: Can refer to both people and things - She is the teacher that everyone admires.
Relative adverbs introduce relative clauses and provide information about time, place, or reason.
When: Refers to time - This is the day when we met.
Where: Refers to place - This is the park where we play.
Why: Refers to reason - This is the reason why I came.
Relative clauses usually follow the noun they describe, but they can sometimes be placed before the noun for stylistic reasons or to avoid ambiguity.
The man who helped us is my neighbor.
The book, which I bought yesterday, is on the table.
Non-essential relative clauses are separated from the main clause by commas. They provide additional, but not essential, information about the noun.
My friend, who is a doctor, lives in New York.
Our house, which has a large garden, is near the beach.
In informal English, the relative pronoun (who, which, that) can sometimes be omitted when it is the object of the clause.
She is the girl I met yesterday.
This is the book you recommended.
Defining relative clauses provide essential information about the noun and cannot be omitted without changing the meaning of the sentence. Non-defining relative clauses provide additional information and can be omitted without changing the meaning of the sentence.
Defining: The man who lives next door is a doctor.
Non-defining: My brother, who lives in London, is coming to visit.
