English · B1 · grammar · 5 minutes
Defining relative clauses
Join a noun to essential identifying information with who, which, that, where, or whose.
Understand the choice
A defining relative clause answers which person or thing? It belongs closely to the noun and normally has no surrounding commas.
Core rule: Who refers to people, which to things, that to either in defining clauses, where to places, and whose to possession.
Notice it in context
The neighbour who found my keys lives upstairs.
El vecino que encontró mis llaves vive arriba.
Who is subject of found; the whole clause identifies which neighbour; lives is the main verb.
This is the café where we first met.
This café is identified as our first meeting place.
Where replaces a place relation inside the relative clause.
I returned the book that you lent me.
I gave back the specific book you previously loaned to me.
That is object and could be omitted in this defining clause.
What to remember
- An object relative pronoun may be omitted: the book (that) I bought.
- Whose can describe possession by people, groups, and things.
Common trap: Do not leave a repeated subject or object after the relative pronoun: the person who she called me is wrong.