Defining and non-defining relative clauses
Exercise. Relative clauses: defining or non-defining?
Study the situations and then decide whether the following relative clauses are defining or non-defining.
Write D or ND
1) I have three brothers.
o My brother who lives in Sidney came to see me last month. D
o My brother, who lives in Sidney, came to see me last month.
2) I have one sister.
o My sister who is 25 years old spent her holiday in France.
o My sister, who is 25 years old, spent her holiday in France. ND
3) Bob's mum has lost her keys.
o Bob's mum who is a musician has lost her car keys.
o Bob's mum, who is a musician, has lost her car keys. ND
4) My friend Jane moved to Canada.
o My friend Jane whose husband is Canadian moved to Canada last week.
o My friend Jane, whose husband is Canadian, moved to Canada last week. ND
5) I am a shoe fanatic.
o The shoes which I bought yesterday are very comfortable. D
o The shoes, which I bought yesterday, are very comfortable.
6) Mr Robinson is very famous.
o Mr Robinson whom I met at the trade fair is a famous inventor.
o Mr Robinson, whom I met at the trade fair, is a famous inventor. ND
7) Tamara has two cats. Both of them are black.
o Tamara's two cats which can play outside are black.
o Tamara's two cats, which can play outside, are black. ND
8) Kevin has four cats. Two of them are black.
o Kevin's two cats which are black can play outside. D
o Kevin's two cats, which are black, can play outside.
9) We are on holiday. Yesterday we visited a church.
o The church which we visited yesterday is very old. D
o The church, which we visited yesterday, is very old.
10) We are on holiday. Yesterday we visited a church.
o St. Mary's Church which we visited yesterday is very old.
o St. Mary's Church, which we visited yesterday, is very old. ND
Complete the sentences with the correct relative pronoun. Be careful- they are non-defining.
1. Dublin , _____which____ is the capital of Ireland, is my favourite city.
2. Amelia, ____whose____ mother is from Shanghai, speaks English and Chinese fluently.
3. This smartphone, ___that_____ I bought last week, takes great photos.
4. Buckingham Palace, ____where____ the Queen of England lives, is in the centre of London.
5. Ferraris, ____that______ are made in Italy, are very expensive.
6. Russell Crowe, _____who_____ starred in Gladiator, was born in New Zealand.
7. Emily, ___which______ brother is a singer, is in my English class.
8. Mr Kemp, ____that______ teaches physics, is going to retire next year.
Make one sentence by changing the sentence in italics into a defining relative clause.
1. They found the money. I dropped the money.
They found the money that I drroped.________________________________
2. I broke the plate. The plate was a wedding present.
I broke the plate which was the wedding present.____________________________
3. The police arrested the man. I saw the man steal a handbag.
The police arrested the man that I saw saw steal a handbag._______________
4. The Queen fired the chef. We had met the chef.
The queen fired the chef that we had met._______________________________
5. She wrote to her friend. Her friend lives in Vietnam.
She wrote to her friend that lives in Vietnam._____________________________
6. Jill ate the sandwich. The sandwich had tomato and cheese inside.
Jill ate the sandwich which had tomato and cheese inside._______________________
7. His friend lives in Scotland. His friend is a lawyer.
His friend who lives in Scotland is a lawyer.____________________________
8. We called the secretary. I went to school with the secretary.
We called the secretary who I went to school with._______________________
9. The CD is in my bag. The CD has Spanish music.
The CD which has Spanish music is in my bag. ___________________________
10. The book is very interesting. The book is about Japanese culture.
The book that is about Japanese culture is very interesting._________________
11. The bag was stolen. I bought the bag yesterday.
The bag that I bought yesterday was stolen.______________________________
12. He likes films. The films come from Asia.
He likes films which come from Asia________________________________
13. My nephew broke the plate. I received the plate as a present.
My nephew broke the plate that I received as a present.__________________
14. The chocolate was very old. We bought the chocolate last week.
The chocolate which we bought last week was very old.__________________
15. The TV programme was very funny. Lucy recommended the TV programme.
The TV programme that Lucy recommended was very funny.______________
16. The girl is on TV tonight. I met the girl yesterday.
The girl that I met yesterday is on TV tonight._________________________
Join the sentences. Use a relative pronoun and commas, if necessary.
1. John's mother___who______ has 6 grandchildren. She lives in Scotland.
2. My friend John __that_______ has just written a best-selling novel. He went to the same school
as me.
3. My grandmother __that______ came from the North of England. She is dead now.
4. We stopped at the museum___________ . We had never visited it before.
5. I've just come back from London _____________. John lives there.
6. Yesterday I met a woman named Susan ________________. Her husband works in London.
