How to use relative clauses - a Mini English Lesson

2 min read 12 days ago
Published on Apr 24, 2025 This response is partially generated with the help of AI. It may contain inaccuracies.

Introduction

This tutorial will guide you through the use of relative clauses in English. Understanding relative clauses can enhance your writing and speaking skills by allowing you to combine sentences and provide additional information about nouns. By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to identify and use both defining and non-defining relative clauses effectively.

Step 1: Understanding Relative Clauses

Relative clauses are dependent clauses that provide more information about a noun in the main clause. They begin with a relative pronoun, such as:

  • who
  • whom
  • whose
  • which
  • that

Practical Advice

  • Use who or that for people.
  • Use which or that for things.
  • Use whose to indicate possession.

Step 2: Identifying Defining Relative Clauses

Defining relative clauses give essential information about the noun. They specify which person or thing we are talking about.

Examples

  • The book that I borrowed was fascinating.
  • The teacher who helped me is excellent.

Practical Advice

  • Without a defining clause, the sentence may lose its meaning.
  • These clauses do not need commas.

Step 3: Identifying Non-Defining Relative Clauses

Non-defining relative clauses add extra information that isn't essential to the meaning of the sentence. This information can be removed without changing the overall message.

Examples

  • My brother, who lives in London, is visiting next week.
  • The Eiffel Tower, which is in Paris, is a famous landmark.

Practical Advice

  • Use commas to separate non-defining clauses from the main clause.
  • These clauses typically provide additional context or detail.

Step 4: Combining Sentences with Relative Clauses

You can combine two sentences using a relative clause to make your writing more fluent.

Example

  • Original: I saw a movie. The movie was amazing.
  • Combined: I saw a movie that was amazing.

Practical Advice

  • Identify the noun you want to add information to and use a relative pronoun to connect the two sentences.

Conclusion

Relative clauses are a powerful tool in English that can enhance your communication skills by providing additional details about nouns. Remember to distinguish between defining and non-defining clauses to use them correctly. Practice combining sentences to improve your fluency. For further study, consider exploring examples in literature or writing exercises to reinforce your understanding.