Notes about relative pronouns
Relative pronouns are, mostly, wh-words used to introduce relative clauses. They are called “relative pronouns” because they refer to nouns mentioned previously. These nouns can be places, people, things, ideas, objects, animals, etc. Relative pronouns are used to join two sentences to avoid repetition.
| PRONOUN | USAGE | EXAMPLES |
| Who (=that) | person (subject/object) | -The man who /that told me the story refused to give me his name. -The man who/that I always see in the club complains about his working hours. |
| Whom(=that) | person (object) | -The man whom/that I always see in the club complains about his working hours. |
| which (=that) | -Thing (object) -Thing (subject) | – The bus which/that I took to Rabat is very comfortable. -All the apples which/that fall down are eaten by the pigs. |
| when | time | -The day when (on which)they arrived was a holiday. |
| where | place | -The hotel where (in which) they stayed was robbed yesterday. |
| whose | possession | -Ann, whose children are at school all day, is a widow. |
| why | reason/cause | – The reason why (for which) he refused was his illness. |
Exercise
Fill the blanks in the following sentences using the correct relative pronouns.
- He didn’t believe what I said ……………… annoyed me very much.
- Ann, …………. is a typist, came to assist Tom.
- I always wanted to visit London, the city …………… my friend, John, was born.
- In 1956, …………. Morocco got its independence, my father bought his largest farm.
- Jack, …………… is our team’s goalkeeper, was injured in last Saturday’s match.
- Tom ………….. leg is still in a bandage, will have to watch the match from the stand.
- He paid me 100 Dhs to clean his house,………….., I think, has never been cleaned.
- Mary,………… children couldn’t swim, said that there should be a notice up warning people.
- The men ……………. prayed aloud all night and kept us awake.
- I met Mary, …………….. asked me to give you this parcel.
- The lorry crashed into a busload of schoolchildren, Six of …………. were slightly injured.
- He gave orders to the manager, …………….. passed them on to the secretary.
- Paul took the mountain road …………….. he had a flat tire.
- She said that the men were thieves, ………….. turned out to be true.
- Tom, …………… wife is a doctor, is going to undergo a heart operation.
- I thank you for the present ………….. you sent me.
- I am looking after some children …………….. are terribly spoilt
- Paul and John, ………………… parents hated each other, were sincere friends.
- This is Mrs. Jones …………….. son won the championship last year.
- I was sitting in a chair ……………….. suddenly collapsed.
