Adjective Clauses with Subject Relative Pronouns

Grammar Explanations
1. Use adjective clauses to identify or give additional information about nouns
or indefinite pronouns such as someone, somebody, something, another, and
other(s).
The adjective clause directly follows the noun (or pronoun) it is identifying
or describing.
Examples
I know the woman who lives there.
(The adjective clause identifies the woman we are talking about.)
Rome is a city which attracts tourists.
(The adjective clause gives additional information about the city.)
Someone who has a lot of friends is lucky.
NOT Someone is lucky who has a lot of friends.
2. Sentences with adjective clauses can be seen as a combination of two
sentences.
Examples
I have a friend. + He loves to shop. =
I have a friend who loves to shop.
My friend lives in Rome. + She paints. =
My friend who lives in Rome paints.
3. Adjective clauses are introduced by relative pronouns.
Subject relative pronouns are:
a. who or that for people
Usage note: That is less formal than who.
b. which or that for places or things
Usage note: That is less formal than which.
c. whose + noun for peoples possessions
BE CAREFUL! Do not use both a subject relative pronoun and a subject
pronoun (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) in the same
adjective clause.
Examples.
I have a friend who lives in Mexico.
I have a friend that lives in Mexico.

New York is a city which never sleeps.

New York is a city that never sleeps.
Hes the man whose dog barks all day.
Scott is some one who loves sports.
NOT Scott is someone who he loves sports.
4. Subject relative pronouns have the same form whether they refer to singular
of plural nouns or to masculine or feminine nouns.
Examples.
Thats the man who lives next door.
Thats the woman who lives next door.
Those are the people who live next door.
5. The verb in the adjective clause is singular if the subject relative pronoun
refers to a singular noun. It is plural if it refers to a plural noun.
BE CAREFUL! When whose + noun is the subject of an adjective clause,
the verb agrees in number with the subject of the adjective
clause.
Examples.
Ben is my friend who lives in Boston.
Al and Ed are my friends who live in Boston.
Meg is a person whose friends depend on her.
NOT Meg is a person whose friends depends on her.

IDENTIFY. Read this paragraph about friendship. First circle the relative
pronouns and underline the adjective clauses. Then draw an arrow from the
relative pronoun to the noun or pronoun it describes.
Almost everyone has friends, but ideas about friendship vary from person
to person. For some, a friend is someone who chats with you on the Internet.
For others, a friend is a person who has known you all your life---someone
whose family knows you, too. Others only use the term for someone who
knows your innermost secrets. Although different people emphasize different
aspects of friendship, there is one element which is always present, and that is
the element of choice. We may not be able to select our families, our coworkers, or even the people that ride the bus with us, but we can pick our
friends. As anthropologist Margaret Mead once said, A friend is someone

who chooses and is chosen.. It is this freedom of choice that makes

friendship such a special relationship.
COMPLETE. A U.S. magazine, Psychology Today, conducted a national
survey on friendship. Here are some of the results. Complete each sentence
with an appropriate relative pronoun and the correct form of the verb in
parentheses.
1. People
(have) moved a lot have fewer friends.
2. People
(have) lived in the same place have more friends.
3. The qualities
(be) most important in a friend are loyalty,
warmth, and the ability to keep secrets.
4. Someone
(face) a crisis turns to friends before family.
5. Betrayal is the cause
(be) most often responsible for ending a
friendship.
6. Many people have friends
social or religious backgrounds (be)
different from theirs.
7. Most people
friends (include) members of the opposite sex say
that these relationships are different from relationships with people of the
same sex.
8. A survey
(appear) in a magazine may not represent everyone.
9. Someone
(not read) the magazine might have other ideas.
COMBINE. Read each pair of sentences. Use a relative pronoun to combine
them into one sentence.
1. I have a friend. My friend lives in Mexico City.
2. Mexico City is an exciting city. The city attracts a lot of tourists.
3. Marta has a brother. Her brothers name is Manuel.
4. He works for a magazine. The magazine is very popular in Mexico.
5. Manuel writes a column. The column deals with relationships.

6. An article won a prize. The article discussed friendships.

7. A person is lucky. That person has a lot of friends.

EDIT. Read part of a students essay. Find and correct six mistakes in the use
of adjective clauses. The first mistake is already corrected.
A writer once said that friends are born, not made. This means that we
automatically become friends with people who they are compatible with us. I
dont agree with this writer. Last summer, I made friends with some people
whos completely different from me.
In July, I went to Mexico City to study Spanish for a month. In our group,
there was a teacher which was much older than I am. We became really good
friends. In my first week, I had a problem which was getting me down.
Mexico City is a city who has a lot of distractions. As a result, I went out all
the time, and I stopped going to my classes. Bob helped me get back into my
studies. After the trip, I kept writing to Bob. He always writes stories that is
interesting and encouraging. Next summer, hes leading another trip what
sounds interesting. I hope I can go.