Relative clauses serve as an attribute to some noun or pronoun in the principal clause. This noun or pronoun is called an antecedent ["æntI'si:dənt]. Relative clauses are often indicated by who (for people), which (for things) and that (for both), or introduced asyndetically, i.e. without any connectives (contact clauses). That refers to people in an informal style.
e.g. Have you ever spoken to the people who / that live next door?
e.g. There's a programme on tonight which you might like.
Subject and Object Relative Clauses
The noun which is being described by a relative clause can be either the subject or the object of the relative clause:
e.g. The man [who normally works here] is ill. (= he normally works here) [He is the subject, so this is a subject relative clause]
e.g. The man [who you saw yesterday] is ill. (= you saw him yesterday) [Him is the object, so this is an object relative clause]
Relative clauses may be of two kinds: limiting (or defining) and descriptive (or non-defining).
Limiting clauses limit and define more clearly the antecedent, i.e. they explain (= define) exactly who or what is being discussed. The limiting clause is placed immediately after the noun, which it describes, and is not separated from the rest of the sentence by comma:
e.g. I was talking to a person who had worked with my father.
e.g. The car that I wanted to buy was too expensive.
Descriptive clauses give additional information about the subject being discussed, but it is not essential information. They may be omitted without affecting the precise understanding of the sentence as a whole. They are indicated by the use of comma before and after the clause:
e.g. This is Ms Rogers, who's joining the firm next week.
e.g. In 1908 Ford developed his Model T car, which sold for $500.
The difference between the limiting and the descriptive clauses is important because:
· They can change the meaning of a sentence
e.g. I have two sisters who are living in New York at the moment. (limiting) = I have more sisters who live somewhere else
e.g. I have two sisters, who are living in New York at the moment. (descriptive) = These are my only sisters and now they are in new York
· Different relative pronouns (who, that, which, etc.) are used for defining or non-defining clauses
Contact clause is a relative limiting clause without who, that or which. Then the two parts of the sentence are more closely joined together.
e.g. Have you seen the dress that I’ve just bought? (Limiting clause) → Have you seen the dress I’ve just bought? (Contact clause)
Who, That, or Which?
Limiting (defining) clause |
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Descriptive (non-defining) clause |
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person |
thing |
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person |
thing |
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subject |
who (or that) |
that (or which) |
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subject |
, who…, |
, which …, |
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object |
that |
that |
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object |
, who (or whom) …, |
, which …, |
Notes:
1. We can also use whom instead of who as an object, although whom is very formal:
e.g. She’s an actress whom most people think is at the peak of her career.
2. We use that as subject after every(thing), some(thing), any(thing), no(thing), only, words such as all, little, few, much and none used as nouns, and superlatives. Which is also used as subject after something and anything, but less commonly. We use that or zero relative pronoun as object after these:
e.g. She’s one of the kindest people (that) I know. (not: …who I know.)
3. We can’t add a subject or object to the relative clause in addition to the relative pronoun:
e.g. The man who gave me the book was the librarian. (not: The man who he gave
me…)
Notice also that adding a pronoun to the main clause in addition to the relative clause is unnecessary, although it is found in speech:
e.g. A friend of mine who is a solicitor helped me. (or, in speech: A friend of mine who is a solicitor – she helped me.)
4. In limiting relative clauses (only!) which may refer to the whole sentence:
e.g. He turned on the television which looked new and expensive. [‘which’ refers to the television]
e.g. He turned on the television. I thought this was rather surprising. →
He turned on the television, which I thought was rather surprising.
[‘which’ refers to the action of turning on the television]
ADVERBIAL CLAUSES
TIME CLAUSES
Time Clauses are introduced by time conjunctions or expressions such as:
after as as soon, as before ,by the time,hardly … when,no sooner … than,scarcely … when,now that,
once,(ever) since,the minute (that),the moment (that),till / until,when,whenever,while,the first/last/next time
e.g. After it happened, I had several more extensive conversations with his family.
e.g. As we were sitting down to dinner, the phone rang.
e.g. If you get stung by a sea urchin, get yourself to a hospital as soon as you can.
e.g. The game was virtually over before they realised what was happening.
e.g. Freezing fruit at home tends to result in jam by the time you have defrosted it.
e.g. I had hardly / scarcely opened the door when the telephone rang.
e.g. She had no sooner said it than he asked her another question.
e.g. Now that she has a daughter, Gellar, 34, wanted a job that required less travel.
e.g. Once Wing discovered model airplanes, building them became a lifelong obsession.
e.g. He has been talking to his children about money since they were 4 or 5, he says.
e.g. I felt I belonged there the minute / the moment I stepped onto UCLA's beautiful North Campus.
e.g. We never do anything well till we cease to think about the manner of doing it.
e.g. Whenever they appeared in his room to pick him up, they were greeted cheerfully.
e.g. Let some other country sort out the world's problems while we take a back seat.
e.g. The next time you're about to take the elevator, why not head for the stairwell?
Clauses of time follow the rule of the sequence of tenses; when the main verb of the sentence is a present or future tense, the verb in the subordinate clause must be a present or future tense too, and when the verb of a sentence is a past tense, the verb in the subordinate clause must be a past tense too.
e.g. I'll watch TV after I have finished doing my homework.
e.g. She left before he came.
Never use a future form in a time clause, use a present tense instead.
e.g. I'll do the washing up when / after they leave.
Present and past perfect tenses in time clauses can emphasise the idea of completion.
e.g. You're not going home until you've finished that report.
e.g. I waited until the rain had stopped.
Notes
1. when (time conjunction) + present tense à When I find it, I'll tell you.
when (question word) + will / would à I don't know when I will find it.
2. while =/= during
during + noun (We learnt some interesting facts during the lecture)
while + clause (We learnt some interesting facts while we were listening to the lecture)
3. not… until / till
e.g. I will not have finished my word until / till Thursday.
e.g. It was not until 2007 that they contacted the National Missing Persons Helpline.
4. by + noun (= before, no later than) à You must finish this report by 8 am tomorrow
by + clause (= before, no later than) à He had watered the plants by the time she got back
until = up to the time when à Can you wait until I return?
When the main clause is negative, until is normally used:
e.g. We didn't leave until Mary arrived. (not: by the time Mary arrived)
CLAUSES OF PURPOSE
Clauses of Purpose are introduced with so that / in order that in the following way:
so that
+ will / can (reference to the present) + Infinitive
in order that + would / could (reference to the past) (informal construction)
e.g. We bought more food so that we would have enough for the extra guests.
so that
+ may / might + Infinitive
in order that + shall / should (formal construction)
e.g. The President left early so that he should not be late for his next meeting
in case + present / past tense
e.g. Take an umbrella with you in case it gets cold.
e.g. They set off early in case the traffic was heavy.
Negative purpose can be expressed by:
so that + can't / couldn't / won't / wouldn't + Infinitive
e.g. They've locked the gate so that we can't get in.
e.g. He left an hour ago so that he wouldn't be caught in the traffic.
for fear + might / should
e.g. They asked their neighbours to keep an eye on the house for fear burglars might break in.
Clauses of Purpose follow the rule of the sequence of tenses.
e.g. I'll leave early so that I'll be home before they come.
e.g. He avoided mentioning it so that he wouldn't offend her.
Notes
1. The idea of purpose can also be rendered by gerundial phrases:
for + Gerund à A kettle is used for boiling water
with a view to + Gerund à We gathered here with a view to reaching a decision.
with the aim of + Gerund à He opened an account with the aim of saving money.
2. Negative purpose can also be expressed by:
so as not to + Infinitive (when the subject of the verb is also the subject of the infinitive) à We are staying in this weekend so as not to spend any money.
(NOT: He left early not to miss the train)
for fear of + Gerund à She didn't make a noise for fear of waking her parents.
prevent + noun / pronoun + (from) + Gerund à It's impossible to prevent the cat from scratching the furniture.
avoid + Gerund à You should avoid carrying heavy bags if you have a bad back.
CLAUSES OF RESULT
Clauses of Result are introduced by such (a) … that / so … that as follows:
such a(n) + (adjective) + singular countable noun
e.g. It was such a thrilling novel that I couldn't put it down.
such + (adjective) + uncountable or plural noun
e.g. He played such moving music that many in the audience felt close to tears.
such + a lot of + noun
e.g. There was such a lot of noise that the children couldn't hear what the teacher was saying.
so + adjective / adverb
e.g. We were so pleased with their present that we rang them immediately.
e.g. He sang so beautifully that he won the contest.
so + much, many, little, few (+noun)
e.g. We had so little time that we didn't manage to visit all our friends.
so + adjective + a(n) + noun [not usual]
e.g. So beautiful a girl was she that the prince fell in love with her at first sight.
Clauses of Result follow the rule of the sequence of tenses.
e.g. He is so tall that he can reach the top shelf.
e.g. She was such a good actress that everyone admired her.
Notes
Coordinate clauses of result are introduced by as a result / therefore / consequently.
e.g. I had forgotten my passport and as a result / therefore couldn't cross the border.
e.g. He didn't work hard. Therefore / Consequently he lost his job. / He didn't work hard; he, therefore, lost his job.
CLAUSES OF REASON
Clauses of Reason are introduced by as, since, seeing that/as, because (of the fact that), on account of the fact that, due to the fact that, the reason why, now (that), for and follow the rule of the sequence of tenses.
e.g. Since / As she hasn't got any money she can't go shopping.
e.g. Maybe we should throw a party, seeing that it's Dan's birthday next week.
e.g. He failed his test because she wasn't well-prepared.
e.g. I am entitled to judge this situation in particular because of the fact that it
is my son's family.
e.g. He asked for a few days off on account of the fact that he was exhausted.
e.g. That should not have happened simply due to the fact that they were
protesting.
e.g. The reason why he resigned was (the fact) that he had been offered a
better job.
e.g. Now (that) they have children, they have less free time.
e.g. The citizens of Harbridge were upset, for a new factory was to be built
near their town.
Notes
1. Because and for can both be used to introduce a clause of reason. However, for can't be used at the beginning of a sentence or as an answer to a why-question. If used, there is always a comma before it in written speech or a pause I oral speech.
e.g. Because I didn't know how, I didn't do it.
e.g. I didn't do it because I didn't know.
e.g. I didn't do it, for I didn't know how.
2. the reason for + noun / V-ing =/= the reason why + clause
e.g. The reason for his resignation was that he had been offered a better job.
e.g. The fact that he had been offered a better job was the reason for his
resigning.
e.g. The reason why he resigned was that he had been offered a better job.
3. because of / on account of / due to + noun =/= because of the fact that / on account of the fact that / due to the fact that + clause
e.g. All flights were cancelled because of / on account of the thick fog.
e.g. All flights were cancelled due to the thick fog.
e.g. He asked for a few days off because of / on account of the fact that he was exhausted.
e.g. He asked for a few days off due to the fact that he was exhausted.
CLAUSES OF CONCESSION
Clauses of Concession follow the rule of the sequence of tenses and are introduced by:
1. Although / Even though / Though (informal) + clause
e.g. Although she spent all afternoon on the project, she didn't finish it.
"Though" can also be put at the end of the sentence:
e.g. She spent all afternoon on the project. She didn’t finish it, though.
2. However / No matter how + adjective / adverb + subject + (may) + verb
e.g. No matter how slowly he may speak, he can't make himself understood.
e.g. However slowly he speaks, he can't make himself understood.
3. Whatever / No matter what + clause
e.g. Whatever what he said, she wasn't convinced.
e.g. No matter what he said, she wasn't convinced.
4. Adjective / Adverb + though + subject + (may) + verb
e.g. Rich though he is, he is not happy.
e.g. Well-qualified though he may be, he can't find a job.
e.g. Early though he left / he may have left, he didn't arrive on time.
5. Adjective / Adverb + as + subject + verb
e.g. Careful as she is, she had an accident.
e.g. Fast as he ran, he didn't catch the bus.
e.g. Much as I like her, I disapprove of her choice.
6. Even if + should + infinitive (unlikely to happen)
e.g. Even if it should rain, I'm still going swimming.
Notes
1. Coordinate clauses rendering the meaning of concession are introduced by nevertheless, however, nevertheless, yet, but, still, while, whereas, on the other hand etc.
e.g. She is tall, while / whereas her brother is rather short.
e.g. The man fell off the ladder. However / Nevertheless, he wasn't hurt.
e.g. It was cold, but she wasn't wearing a coat.
e.g. Cars aren't environmentally friendly. On the other hand, bicycles are.
e.g. Tom studied hard, yet he failed his exam.
2. Adverbial modifiers of concession can be introduced by in spite of / despite + noun / V-ing:
e.g. Despite / In spite of being rich they aren't happy.
e.g. Despite the fact / In spite of the fact that they are rich, they aren't happy.
CLAUSES OF MANNER
Clauses of Manner are introduced by as if / as though.
e.g. He is acting as if he's had bad news.
e.g. She talks as if she knows everything.
e.g. It seems as though a hurricane is coming.
The verb usage following as if / as though is normally similar to that in conditionals and depends on whether the ideas. Note the following examples:
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Expressing similarity / probability (how sb / sth seemed) |
as if / as though + any tense form e.g. She behaves as if she is rich. (She may be rich, she may not – she seems to be rich, anyway.) e.g. She felt as if she had a high temperature. (We don't know but she seemed to have a high temperature.)
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Unreal in the present |
as if / as though + Past Simple / Past Continuous e.g. She's not from Spain but she speaks Spanish as if she were / was from Spain. (not true – she is not from Spain)
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Unreal in the past |
as if / as though + Past Perfect e.g. He looked as if he had seen a ghost. (not true – he didn't see a ghost)
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Notes
We can use like instead of as if / as though only in spoken English.
e.g. It looks as if it is going to snow. = It looks like it's going to snow.
