Unit 8

Relative clauses
Defining and Non-defining
Llengua estrangera per a l’ensenyament: anglès

Original ppt by Neus Frigolé
Relative clauses
Two types:
• defining relative clauses: give essential information to understand the sentence. We

need the relative to understand the sentence.
• non-defining relative clauses: give EXTRA information. If we remove the relative
clause, the sentence still makes sense.
Non-defining relative clauses

Look at this sentence:
My grandfather, who is 87, goes swimming every day.
‘who is 87’ is a non-defining relative clause.
It adds extra information to the sentence. If we take the clause out of the sentence,
the sentence still has the same meaning.
Look at some more examples:

The film, which stars Tom Carter, is released on Friday.
My eldest son, whose work takes him all over the world, is in Hong Kong at the
moment.
The car, which can reach speeds of over 300km/ph, costs over $500,000.
Non-defining relative clauses

• can use most relative pronouns: who, which, whose, where, etc,) but they CAN’T use
that and the relative pronoun CAN NEVER be omitted.
The film, which stars Tom Carter, is released on Friday.

The film, that stars Tom Carter, is released on Friday.
• are more often used in written English than in spoken English.

• You can tell that a clause is non-defining because it is SEPARATED BY
COMMAS.
Defining relative clauses
Look at this sentence:
The woman who lives next door works in a bank.
‘who lives next door’ is a defining relative clause. It tells us which woman we are talking
about. Without this information, we wouldn’t know who the woman is.
Look out! There’s the dog that bit my brother.

The film that we saw last week was awful.
This is the skirt I bought in the sales.

• With defining relative clauses, we can use who or that to talk about people.
She’s the woman who cuts my hair.
She’s the woman that cuts my hair.
• And we can use which or that to talk about things.
The dog that bit my brother.
The dog which bit my brother.

• It is also sometimes possible to omit the relative pronoun.
This is the skirt that I bought in the sales.

This is the skirt which I bought in the sales.
This is the skirt I bought in the sales.
In this sentence ‘skirt’ is the object of the verb (buy). ‘I’ is the subject.
When the relative pronoun is the object, it can be omitted.
The film we saw last week was awful. The film THAT we saw last week was awful.
The friend I was travelling with spoke French. The friend WHO I was travelling with
spoke French
Defining or non-defining?
• Remember that defining relative clauses are used to add important information. The
sentence would have a different meaning without the defining relative clause.
I’m going to wear the skirt that I bought in London. The defining relative clause tells us
which skirt.
• The skirt, which is a lovely dark blue colour, only costs £10.
The non-defining relative clause doesn’t tell us which skirt – it gives us more
information about the skirt.
Exercise:
- Join the following pair of sentences to make one single sentence.

- Say which sentences are defining and which non-defining.
- Once you have joined them, decide in which sentences you can omit the
relative pronoun and in which you can’t. Think about the reasons why it
CAN’T be omitted.
- Check the answers on the following slide.
ANSWER KEY
Reflexive pronouns.
Reflexive pronouns are words ending in -self or -selves. They refer back to a person or thing. We often
use reflexive pronouns when the subject and the object of a verb are the same. (e.g., I believe in
myself).
The nine English reflexive pronouns are: myself, yourself, himself, herself, oneself, itself, ourselves,
yourselves, and themselves.
Below you will see a table with the nine reflexive pronouns and their corresponding personal pronouns
(subject/object) and possessive adjectives.
Personal pronouns Personal pronouns Possessive Reflexive

(Subject) (Object) adjectives pronouns
I Me My Myself
Singular You You Your Yourself
She Her Her Herself
He Him His Himself
It It Its Itself
Plural We Us Our Ourselves
You You Your Yourselves
They Them Their Themselves
Indefinite pronouns.
An indefinite pronoun does not refer to any specific person, thing, place, or amount. It is vague and
"not definite". Some typical indefinite pronouns are:
● all, another, any, anybody/anyone, anything, each, everybody/everyone, everything, few,

many, nobody, none, one, several, some, somebody/someone.
Look at the list below:
people things places
(+) some with the verb somebody/someone something somewhere

in singular (to talk Somebody/Someone Something strange is I’ve seen him
about one phones you everyday at happening. somewhere before.
person/thing/place in a this time.
positive sentence.
every with the verb in everybody/everyone everything everywhere
singular (to talk about Everyone/Everybody is Everything is analysed She’s looked for him
all people, things or dancing in the party. by the computer. everywhere
places)
(-), (?) any with the anybody/anyone anything Anywhere
verb in singular (to talk
(-) There wasn’t (-) There isn’t anything (-) But he isn’t
about unspecific
anybody/anyone in the in the fridge. It’s empty. anywhere.
people, things, or
street after the storm.
places in a negative
sentence or question).
(+) In the affirmative (+) Anybody/Anyone (+) This robot can do (+) An accident can
sentence means, here can help you. anything you want. happen anywhere.
(qualsevol persona,
cosa o lloc)
no with an affirmative nobody/no one nothing nowhere

verb and in singular, Nobody/ No one is in This has nothing to do Definitely, he is
but negative meaning. the library now. with you. It’s Peter’s nowhere.
(to indicate no people, responsibility.
thing or place)
Reciprocal pronouns
We use the reciprocal pronouns each other and one another when two or more people do the
same thing.
Peter and Mary helped each other. = Peter helped Mary and Mary helped Peter.
We sent one another Christmas cards. = We sent them a Christmas card and they sent us a
Christmas card.
They didn't look at each other. = X didn't look at Y and Y didn't look at X.
We also use the possessive forms each other's and one another's:
They helped to look after each other's children.
The group of students often stayed in one another's houses.
Note that we do not use reciprocal pronouns as the subject of a clause.al oppor

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Relative clauses

Defining and Non-defining

Llengua estrangera per a l’ensenyament: anglès

• defining relative clauses: give essential information to understand the sentence. We

Non-defining relative clauses

Look at some more examples:

Non-defining relative clauses

The film, which stars Tom Carter, is released on Friday.

• are more often used in written English than in spoken English.

Look at some more examples:

Look out! There’s the dog that bit my brother.

Defining relative clauses

Defining relative clauses

This is the skirt that I bought in the sales.

- Join the following pair of sentences to make one single sentence.

Personal pronouns Personal pronouns Possessive Reflexive

● all, another, any, anybody/anyone, anything, each, everybody/everyone, everything, few,

Look at the list below:

people things places

(+) some with the verb somebody/someone something somewhere

no with an affirmative nobody/no one nothing nowhere

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