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Defining relative clauses

Meaning

In Academic English we use defining relative clauses when we give definitions, explain
processes and describe inventions. Defining relative clauses give essential information
about a noun or noun phrase. We introduce a defining relative clause with a relative
pronoun WHO, WHICH, THAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHOSE and WHY.

• A patent is a right given to the owner of an invention that stops other people from
copying or using the invention without permission.

• In 2009 Brian Acton and Jan Koum built an innovative app which enabled people
across the world to instantly message each other.

• Susan Kare was the designer who created the unique Happy Mac icon on Apple
computers.

Relative pronouns can either be the subject or object of the clause.

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 Defining relative clauses
Form
WHO
We use WHO to refer to people.

NOUN/SUBJECT + WHO + VERB + DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE

Robert Anderson was the engineer who designed the first electric car in 1884.

NOUN/SUBJECT + WHO + PRONOUN/NOUN + VERB + DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE

The designer who I met at the conference has produced a new app.
The designer I met at the conference has produced a new app.

We can leave out the relative pronoun in the above sentence as it is an object pronoun and
refers back to the object of the clause.

NOTE: When giving a formal presentation we can replace who with whom when it is an object
pronoun. This is not very common in American English.
• The designer whom I met at the conference has produced a new app.

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 Defining relative clauses
Form
WHICH/THAT
We use WHICH or THAT when we refer to things. In American English it is more common to
use THAT. In British English WHICH is more formal than THAT.

NOUN/SUBJECT + WHICH/THAT + VERB + DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE

A genetically modified tomato is a tomato that has had its genes modified.

NOTE: We cannot leave the relative pronoun out when it is the subject of the clause.

NOUN/SUBJECT + WHICH/THAT + PRONOUN/NOUN + VERB + DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE

The electronic device that we designed last semester won an award
The electronic device we designed last semester won an award.
NOTE: We can leave the relative pronoun out when it is the object of the clause.

NOTE: In spoken English we often use “that” instead of “who” or “which”

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 Defining relative clauses
Form
WHOSE
We use “whose’” to give information about possessions.
• A genetically modified crop is a plant whose genes have been scientifically changed.

WHERE
We use “where” to give information about a place.
• The laboratory where they research GMOs is next to the campus.

WHEN
We use “when” to give information about time.
• The time when most undergraduates apply for places at universities is between October
and December.

WHY
We use “why” to give information about a reason.
• The world food crisis is the main reason why we need genetically modified crops.

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 Defining relative clauses
Form

Relative pronoun Refers to…

who/that a person or people

which/that a thing or things/a concept or concepts
where a place or places
why a reason something happens or reasons
things happen

when a time/times, days, years

whose possessions

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 Defining relative clauses
Pronunciation hints

Weak forms are syllable sounds that we do not stress when speaking naturally.

In defining relative clauses the relative pronoun that is often pronounced in its weak form.

It is an industry that’s very profitable.

/ðəts/

It is pronounced in its weak form as it does not carry the main content of the sentence but does
help us construct a grammatically correct sentence.

It can be difficult to hear the weak form of that in connected speech but it is important we
listen for it and we must remember to use that when it is the subject of the defining relative
clause.

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 Defining relative clauses
Right or Wrong
Look at these sentences. There are some mistakes. Which sentences are wrong? Explain why.

1. Norman Foster is the chairman of the architecture firm where is designing a drone port in
Rwanda.
2. An patentable invention can be a product or process, that gives a new technical solution to
a problem. .
3. Martin Cooper is the American engineer whom designed the first hand-held cell phone in
1973.
4. The 11 countries that produce the most genetically modified crops clearly understand their
importance in today’s world.
5. Her lack of research was the main reason why her Ph.D proposal was rejected.
6. The students were asked to present a paper on an invention which they felt had been
groundbreaking in the field of medicine.
7. Brunel University is why many students go to study Art and Design in the UK because it
offers the best career prospects.
8. There are many electronic gadgets on the market enable people to get fitter and healthier.

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 Defining relative clauses
Right or Wrong – Answers

1. Norman Foster is the chairman of the architecture firm where is designing a drone
port in Rwanda. ✖ that or which
2. An patentable invention can be a product or process that gives a new technical
solution to a problem. ✖ no comma
.
3. Martin Cooper is the American engineer whom designed the first hand-held cell
phone in 1973. ✖ who
4. The 11 countries that produce the most genetically modified crops clearly understand
their importance in today’s world. ✔
5. Her lack of research was the main reason why her PhD proposal was rejected. ✔
6. The students were asked to present a paper on an invention which they felt had been
groundbreaking in the field of medicine. ✔
7. Brunel University is why many students go to study Art and Design in the UK because
it offers the best career prospects. ✖ where
8. There are many electronic gadgets on the market enable people to get fitter and
healthier. ✖ which or that

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 Defining relative clauses
Right or Wrong – feedback

1. Norman Foster is the chairman of the architecture firm where is designing a drone
port in Rwanda. ✖
We use “that” or “which” to refer to things and “where” to refer to places.

.
2. An patentable invention can be a product or process, that gives a new technical
solution to a problem. ✖
We do not use commas in defining relative clauses. We can also use “which” but that is
less formal and more frequently used in spoken English.
3. Martin Cooper, is the American engineer, whom designed the first hand-held cell
phone in 1973. ✖
We only use whom when it’s an object pronoun.
4. The 11 countries that produce the most genetically modified crops clearly understand
their importance in today’s world. ✔
We can also use which as we are referring to a thing, in this case a country, and not a
person.

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 Defining relative clauses
Right or Wrong – feedback
5. Her lack of research was the main reason why her Ph.D proposal was rejected. ✔
We use “why” when referring to a reason or reasons.

6. The students were asked to present a paper on an invention which they felt had been
groundbreaking in the field of medicine. ✔
.
The relative pronoun, “which”, can be omitted in this sentence as it is object of the
defining clause.

7. Brunel University is why many students go to study Art and Design in the UK because it
offers the best career prospects. ✖
Remember we use the relative pronoun “where” when we refer to places.

8. There are many electronic gadgets on the market enable people to get fitter and
healthier. ✖
Remember we can not omit the relative pronoun if it is the subject of the clause only if it
is the object of the clause.

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 Defining relative clauses
Practice

Inigo has just finished college and is thinking of enrolling on a Virtual Reality Systems Design course.
Here is an extract of an introductory talk he attended on virtual reality.
Fill in the blanks using which, that, who, where or whose. You may use some of the words more than
once or you may leave some blank.

Thank you for coming along today. I’ll do my best to explain what virtual reality is as simply
and clearly as possible. Jaron Lanier is the creative scientist 1. _________ introduced us to
the term ‘virtual reality’ in the early 1980s and founded VPL Research. It was his company
2. ________ sold the first ever VR goggles and gloves giving those who could afford the
products a new vision of the future.

So what exactly is “virtual reality”? It is a term 3. __________ is finally attracting a lot of

attention in the world of gaming after decades of trying. It’s a technology 4. __________
allows users to interact with a computer-simulated environment.

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 Defining relative clauses
Practice
Fill in the blanks using which, that, who, where or whose. You may use some of the words
more than once or you may leave some blank.

I’m sure many of you have heard of the Oculus Rift head mounted display. Well, the Oculus
Rift headset is the device 5. ________ currently has the highest profile on the virtual
reality market. It’s a headset 6. _________ gamers all over the world have been waiting
for. So how does it work? What does it do?

The Rift goes over players’ eyes and fills their vision with a brand new virtual world 7.
_________ they can explore different destinations, visit fantastic landscapes and play over
30 different games.

The virtual reality market is now at last profitable and it is hardly surprising to learn that
Facebook have created a research team 8. __________ main role is to explore the
potential of virtual reality technology.

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 Defining relative clauses
Practice – Answers

Thank you for coming along today. I’ll do my best to explain what virtual reality is as simply
and clearly as possible. Jaron Lanier is the creative scientist 1. who introduced us to the
term “Virtual Reality” in the early 1980s and founded VPL Research. It was his company 2.
which/that sold the first ever VR goggles and gloves giving those who could afford the
products a new vision of the future.

So what exactly is “Virtual reality”? It is a term 3. which/that is finally attracting a lot of

attention in the world of gaming after decades of trying. It’s a technology 4. which allows
users to interact with a computer-simulated environment.

I’m sure many of you have heard of the Oculus Rift head mounted display. Well, the Oculus
Rift headset is the device 5. which/that currently has the highest profile on the virtual
reality market. It’s a headset 6. which/that gamers all over the world have been waiting
for. So how does it work? What does it do?

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 Defining relative clauses
Practice – Answers

The Rift goes over players’ eyes and fills their vision with a brand new virtual world
7. where they can explore different destinations, visit fantastic landscapes and play over 30
different games.

The virtual reality market is now at last profitable and it is hardly surprising to learn that
Facebook have created a research team 8. whose main role is to explore the potential of
virtual reality technology.

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 Defining relative clauses
Conclusion

We use defining relative clauses when we want to link ideas in a sentence and produce
more complex sentences in Academic English. We use defining relative clauses to give
information about a noun which is necessary for the sense of the sentence.

We can use defining relative clauses when giving definitions, describing processes and
describing inventions.

• A program is a set of instructions that directs computers to do the tasks the

programmer wants them to do.
• First of all programmers either produce a flowchart that shows the different steps
needed to solve the problem or they use a special language which clearly explains the
steps.

Defining relative clauses can come at the end and in the middle of a sentence. We
do not use commas at the beginning or the end of a defining relative clause.

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