Use relative clauses to provide extra information. This information can either define something (defining clause), or provide unnecessary, but interesting, added information (non-defining clause).
Relative clauses can be introduced by:
- a relative pronoun: who (whom), which, that, whose
- no relative pronoun
- where, why and when instead of a relative pronoun
You need to consider the following when deciding which relative pronoun to use:
- Is the subject or object or possessive of a relative clause?
- Does it refers to a person or an object?
- Is the relative clause a defining or non-defining relative clause?
NOTE: Relative clauses are often used in both spoken and written English. There is a tendency to use non-defining relative clauses mostly in written, rather than in spoken, English.
