Non defining relative clauses

Relative clauses – non-defining relative clauses

who, which, where, that

Relative clauses give us information about the person or thing mentioned.

• My grandfather, who's 87, goes swimming every day.
• The house, which was built in 1883, has just been opened to the public.
• The award was given to Sara, whose short story impressed the judges.

who, which and whose

We can use who to talk about people, which to talk about things and whose to refer to the person or thing that something belongs to.

• Yesterday I met my new boss, who was very nice.
• The house, which is very big, is also very cold!
• My next-door neighbour, whose children go to school with ours, has just bought a new car.
• After the port there is a row of fisherman's houses, whose lights can be seen from across the bay.

Places and times

We can use which with a preposition to talk about places and times. In these cases it's more common to use where or when instead of which and the preposition.

• City Park, which we used to go to, has been closed down.
• City Park, where we used to go, has been closed down.
• December, which Christmas is celebrated in, is a summer month for the southern hemisphere.
• December, when Christmas is celebrated, is a summer month for the southern hemisphere.

Complete the sentences with 'who', 'which', 'whose', 'when' or 'where'.

1. Last week he got a phone call from his father, ______ he hadn't spoken to in years. 2. When I left they threw me a party, ______ was a complete surprise. 3. My birthday, ______ was my 40th, turned out to be a wonderful day! 4. The Javan tiger, ______ habitat was largely destroyed by humans, is now extinct. 5. The hostel, ______ we've stayed at several times, is simple but clean.