Adjective Clause and Adjective Phrase

A.DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE ( ADJECTIVE CLAUSE ).

   Relative Pronouns : who, whom, which, whose.

I. Use for persons :

1. As subject, relative pronouns : who, that

Example :

I thanked the woman. She helped me.

= a) I thanked the woman who helped me.

= b) I thanked the woman that helped me.

 In (a): I thanked the woman = an independent clause.

           who helped me = an adjective clause

The adjective clause modifies the noun “ woman “.

In (a) : who is the subject of the adjective clause.

In (b) : that is the subject of the adjective clause.

(a)and (b) have the same meaning.

who    = used for people.

which = used for things.

that    = used for both people and things.

2. As object, relative pronouns : whom, who, that, -

Example :

 A). The man was Mr. Jones. I saw him.

= a) The man  whom I saw was Mr. Jones.

= b) The man who I saw was Mr. Jones.

= c) The man that I saw was Mr. Jones.

= d) The man I saw was Mr. Jones.

‘WHO “ is usually used instead of WHOM, especially in speaking. WHOM is generally used only in very formal English. Whereas WHO is used in informal English.

WHO (WHOM ) = used for people.

The leader is in. The employees want to see him.

= The leader whom the employees  want to see is in. ( Formal English ).

Informal English :

= The leader who the employees want to see is in.

= The leader that the employees want to see is in.

= The leader the employees want to see is in.

“Whom “ is possible instead of who ( for people ) when it is the object of the verb in the relative clause.

e.g :

1. The man whom I wanted to see was away on holiday. ( I wanted to see him ).

You can also use whom with a preposition ( to/from/with whom, etc )

e.g :

1. The girl with whom he fell in love left him after a few weeks. ( he fell in love with

    her ).

    But, we don’t often use “ whom “. In spoken English, we normally prefer who or  

    that ( or you can leave them out ).

e.g :

1. The man ( who / that ) I wanted to see....

2. The girl ( who / that ) he fell in love with.....

B). She is the woman. I told you about her.

= a). She is the woman about whom I told you.

= b). She  is the woman whom I told you about.

= c). She is the woman who I told you about.

= d). She is the woman that I told you about.

= e). She is the woman I told you about.

In very formal English, the preposition comes at the beginning of the adjective clause, as in (a) . Usually, however, in every day usage, the preposition comes after the subject and verb of the adjective clause, as in the other examples.

If the preposition comes at the beginning of the adjective clause, only whom may be used. A preposition is never immediately followed by that or who.

3. As  possessive, relative pronoun : whose

Whose and who’s have the same pronounciation, but NOT the same meaning.

Example :

a). Mr. Hasan went to Australia.Mr. Hasan’s house is on Jln. Majapahit.

     = Mr. Hasan whose house is on Jln. Majapahit went to Australia.

b). I know the man. His bicycle was stolen.

     = I know the man whose bicycle was stolen.

c). The student writes well. I read her composition.

     = The student whose composition I read writes well.

d). Mr. Catt has a painting. Its value is inestimable.

     = Mr. Catt has a painting whose value is inestimable.

Whose is used to show possession. It carries the same meaning as other possessive pronouns used as adjectives : his, her, its, their, her, our, your, and my. Like possessive adjectives above, whose is connected to a noun.

e.g : his bicycle           whose bicycle 
      her composition         whose composition

Both whose and the noun it is connected to are placed at the beginning of the adjective clause. Whose can not be omitted.

Whose usually modifies “ people “, but it may also be used to modify “ things “, as in example (d).

II. Use for things :

I. As  subject, relative pronouns : which, that.

Example :

The book is mine. It is on the table.

= a) The book which is on the table is mine.

= b) The book that is on the table is mine.

2. As object, relative pronouns : which, that , -

Example :

A). The movie wasn’t very good. We saw it last night.

     = a) The movie which we saw last night  wasn’t very good.

     = b) The movie that we saw last night  wasn’t very good.

     = c) The movie we saw last night wasn’t very good.

B). The music was good. We listened to it last night.

     = a). The music to which we listened last night was good.

     = b). The music which we listened to last night was good.

     = c). The music that we listened to last night was good.

     = d). The music we listened to last night was good.

In very formal English, the preposition comes at the beginning of the adjective clause, as in (a) . Usually, however, in every day usage, the preposition comes after the subject and verb of the adjective clause, as in the other examples.

If the preposition comes at the beginning of the adjective clause, only which  may be used. A preposition is never immediately followed by that .

3. As possessive, relative pronouns : whose ; of which.

Example :

The dog ran away. Its tail is long.

=  The dog whose tail  is long ran away.

=  The dog of which the tail is long ran away.

B. NON DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE.

I. For persons:

1. As subject, relative pronoun : who.

Example :

a).My son, who studies at Geodetic Engineering of UNDIP Semarang now , is

    Narendra Sava Hanung.

b). My husband, who died ( passed away ) about 10 years ago because of the traffic

     accident, is Mr. Sunartoyo, BBA.

c).My brother, who lives in Purwakarta, has two sons .

d).The girl looks like my sister. The girl is getting out of the car.

= The girl, who is getting out of the car, looks like my sister.

2. As object, relative pronoun : whom,who.

Example :

I met a boy. He is a Japanese.

= a) The boy, whom I met , is a Japanese.

= b). The boy, who I met , is a Japanese.

3. As possessive , relative pronoun : whose.

Example :

The man visited us last night. The man’s car is blue.

= The man, whose car is blue, visited us last night.

But, in spoken English, we often keep the preposition after the verb in the relative clause. When we do this, we normally use who ( not “ whom “).

e.g :

 This is Mr. Carter, who I was telling you about. ( Non Defining Relative Clause ).

II. For things :

1. As subject, relative pronoun : which.

Example :

The book is on the table. The book describes prehistoric animals.

= The book, which describes the pre-historic animals, is on the table.

2. As Object, relative pronoun : which.

Example :

Tono is reading the book. The book has  a red cover.

= The book, which Tono is reading, has a red cover.

But, in spoken English, we often keep the preposition after the verb in the relative clause. When we do this, we normally use “WHICH.

e.g :

 Yesterday we visited the City Museum, which I’d never been to before.

3.As possessive, relative pronoun : whose (for animals ) ; of which ( for things ).

Example :

a). The cat was dead. Its furs are black.

     = The cat, whose furs are black, was dead.

b). I have a car. Its engine is noisy.

     = I have a car,of which the engine is noisy.

EXERCISES :

Combine the sentences using the second sentences as an adjective clause  in Defining Relative Clause !! Give all the possible patterns !

1. I saw the man. He closed the door.

2. Iam using a sentence. It contains an adjective clause.

3. The people were very nice. We visited them yesterday.

4. I liked the composition.You wrote it.

5. The man was very kind. I talked to him yesterday.

6. The picture was beautiful. She was looking at it.

7. The student writes well. I read her composition.

8. Mr. Catt has a painting. Its value is inestimable.

9. The book was good. I read it.

10. I liked the woman. I met her at the party last night.

11. The meeting was interesting. I went to it.

12. I must thank the people. I got a present from them.

13. The man is standing over there. I was telling you about him.

14. The girl is a good friend of mine. I borowed her camera.

15. The professor is excellent. I am taking her course.

16. I live in a dormitory. Its residents come from many countries.

17. I have to call the man. I accidentally picked up his umbrella after the meeting.

18. I met the woman. Her husband is the president of the corporation.

19. Mr Smith teaches a class for students. Their native language is not English.

20. I come from a country. Its history goes back thousands of years.

21. The man is very proud. His daughter is an astronaut.

22. The boy wants to be a violinist. His mother is a famous musician.

23. I have a friend. Her brother is a police officer.

24. I thanked the woman. I borrowed her dictionary.

25. The man is famous. His picture is in the newspaper.

26. The movie was interesting. We went to it.

27. The man is over there. I told you about him.

28. Alicia likes the family. She is living with them.

29. I enjoyed the music. We listened to it after dinner.

30. The blouse is made of silk. Mary is wearing it.

Relative adverbs : where, when, why.

Using WHERE.

1. The building is very old. He lives in that building ( = there ).

   a) = The building where he lives is very old.

   b) = The building in which he lives is very old.

   c) = The building which he lives in is very old.

   d) = The building that he lives in is very old.

   e) = The building he lives in is very old.

WHERE  is used in adjective clause to modify a place ( city, country, room,house,etc).

If WHERE  is used, a preposition is not included in the adjecive clause.

If WHERE is not used, the preposition must be included.

Combine the sentences using the second sentence as an adjective clause !

1. The city was beautiful. We spent our vacation there. ( in that city ).

2. That is the restaurant. I will meet you there. ( at that restaurant ).

3. The town is small. I grew up there. ( in that town ).

Using WHEN.

1.I’ll never forget the day. I met you then on that day ( = then ).

 a) = I’ll never forget the day when I met you.

 b) = I’ll never forget the day on which I met you.

 c) = I’ll never forget the day that I met  you.

 d) = I’ll never forget the day I met you.

WHEN is used in an adjective clause to modify a noun of time ( year, day, time, century,etc).

The use of a preposition in an adjective clause that modifies a noun of time is somewhat ( rather ) different from that in other adjective clause.

A preposition is used preceding WHICH  ( like part b). Otherwise, the preposition is omitted.

Combine the sentences using the second sentence as an adjective clause !

1. Monday is the day. We will come then. ( on that day ).

2. 07.05 is the time. My plane arrives then ( on that time ).

3. 1960 is the year. The revolution took place then ( in that year ).

4. July is the month. The weather is usually the hottest then ( in that month ).

Using WHY.

WHY replaces for which used for reasons.

Example :

The reasons for which he came is not very convincing.

= The reason why he came is not very convincing.

Complete the blanks using suitable relative pronouns or relative adverbs.

          Sherlock Holmes, (1) ..whose...... name is well- known, didn’t really exist. However, for many people (2 )..who/ that......... have read his adventures, he might as well have been a real person.

          The man (3)...who / that....... created Homes was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, born in Edinburg in1809. He trained as a doctor, but found he could earn more money by writing than by practising medicine.He wrote not only stories about Holmes, but many other books (4)..which......... people also liked. However, it is for the detectives stories (5) .which......... he wrote that he is best remembered.

          The place (6) ..where........ the Holmes mysteries are set is Victorian England. Holmes, (7)..who..... is a brilliant detective, uses his intelligent and scientific knowledge to solve the mysteries.

          Even though Doyle wrote many Holmes mysteries, we’ll never know the reason (8) ...why....... he gave us so little information about Holmes’ private life.

All the books were written in the first person, not by Holmes, but by his assistant. Dr. Watson, ((9)....whose...... knowledge of his master’s private life was limited.

NOTE   :

A). We often use “ing “ and “ ed “ clauses after there is, there are / there was,there

     were etc.

e.g :

1. Is there anybody waiting to see me ( him, her, them, etc ) ?

    = Is there anybody who is waiting  ( waits ) to see me ?

2. There were some children swimming in the river.

    = There were some children who were swimming ( swam ) in the river.

3. When I arrived, there was a big red car parked outside the house.

    = When I arrived , there was a big red car which was parked outside the house.

B). USING EXPRESSIONS OF QUANTITY IN ADJECTIVE CLAUSES.

An adjective clause may contain an expression of quantity with :

Some of, many of, most of, none of, half of, both of, neither of, each of, all of, both of, several of, a few of, little of, a number of, etc.+ whom ( people )/ which ( things )/whose( possessive ).

e.g :

1. Jack has three brothers. All of them are married.

    = Jack has three brothers, all of whom are married.

2. Ann has a lot of books. She hasn’t read most of them.

    = Ann has a lot of books, most of which she hasn’t read.

3. In my class there are 20 students.Most of them are from the Far East.

    = In my class there are 20 students, most of whom are from the Far East.

4. He gave several reasons. Only a few of them were valid.

    = He gave several reasons, only a few of which were valid.

5.The teachers discussed Jim. One of his problems was poor study habits.

    = The teachers discussed Jim, one of whose problems was poor study habits.

The other examples :

1. He tried on three jackets, none of which fitted him.

2. They have got three cars, two of which they never use.

3. Tom has a lot of friends, many of whom he was at school with.

4.Two men, neither of whom I had seen before, came into my office.

Note : Adjective clauses that begin with an expression of quantity are more common in writing than speaking. Commas are used.

C). Relative clauses/ Adjective clauses tell us which person or thing (or

    what kind of person or thing ) the speaker means.

e.g :

1. The man who lives next door is my neighbour.

    = The man is my neighbour. He lives next door.

   “The man who lives next door “ tells us which man.

2. A company that makes  laptop  is a new company.

   = A company is a new company. It makes  laptop.

   ” A company that makes laptop ” tells us what kind of company.

3. People who live in London are excellent persons.

   = People are excellent persons. They live in London.

   “People who live in London” tells us what kind of people.

D). USING WHICH TO MODIFY A WHOLE SENTENCE.

Study these sentences below !

1.a).Tom was late.

   b).That surprised me.

   c)= Tom was late, which surprised me.

2. d).The elevator is out of order.

    e). This is too bad.

    f).= The elevator is out of order, which is too bad.

Note :

The pronoun that and this can refer to the idea of a whole sentence which comes before. In ( b ) : The word that refers to the whole sentence “ Tom was late “.

Similarly, an adjective clause with which  may modify the idea of a whole sentence. In (c) : The word which refers to the whole sentence “ Tom was late “.

Using which to modify a whole sentence is informal and occurs most frequently in spoken English. This structure  is  generally not appropriate in formal writing. Whenever it is written, however, it is preceded by a comma to reflect a pause in speech.

E).REDUCTION OF ADJECTIVE CLAUSE  TO AN ADJECTIVE PHRASE : 

   INTRODUCTION.

A clause is a group of related words that contains a subject and a verb.

A phrase is a group of related words that does not contain a subject and a verb.

Study these sentences below !

a).Adjective Clause : The girl who is sitting next to me is Mary.

b). Adjective Phrase : The girl sitting next to me is Mary.

An adjective phrase is a reduction of an adjective clause. It modifies a noun. It does not contain a subject and a verb. The adjective clause in (a) can be reduced to the adjective phrase in ( b). So, (a) and (b) have the same meaning.

For examples :

Active :

1. The girl sitting between Usrok and Unyil is Melani.

    = The girl who is sitting between Usrok and Unyil is Melani.

    = The girl who sits between Usrok and Unyil is Melani.

2. The man sitting between Mr. A and Mr. B was Pak Raden.

     = The man who was sitting between Mr. A and Mr. B was Pak Raden.

     = The man who sat between Mr. A and Mr. B was Pak Raden.

Passive :

The students invited to the party should come on time.

=The students who are invited to the party should come on time.

= The students who were invited to the party should come on time.

c). Adjective Clause : The boy who is playing the piano is Ben.

d). Adjective Phrase : The boy playing the piano is Ben.

e). Adjective Clause : The boy ( whom ) I saw was Tom.

f). Phrase  : ( none ).

Only adjective clauses that have a subject pronoun : who, which, or that are reduced to modifying adjective phrases. The adjective clause in (e) can not be reduced to an adjective phrase.

F). CHANGING AN ADJECTIVE CLAUSE TO AN ADJECTIVE PHRASE.

There are two ways in which an adjective clause is changed to an adjective phrase.

1.The subject pronoun is omitted AND the be form of the verb is omitted.

a). 1. Clause  : The man who is talking to John is from Korea.

        Phrase  : The man talking to John is from Korea.

     2. Clause : The student who is sitting next to Mary is from China.

         Phrase : The student sitting next to Mary is from China

CLAUSES HAS PASSIVE MEANING :

b). Clause : The ideas which are presented in that book are interesting.

     Phrase : The ideas presented in that book are interesting.

c). Clause  : The crazy man   who was  injured in the accident was taken to hospital.

     Phrase : The crazy man  injured in the accident was taken to hospital.

d). Clause : The people who have been invited to the party can come.

     Phrase : The people invited to the party can come.

e). Clause : The students who are invited to the party should come on time.

     Phrase : The students invited to the party should come on time

f). Clause : The newspaper that was given to me yesterday is the Jakarta Post.

     Phrase : The newspaper given to me yesterday is the Jakarta Post.

Injured and invited are past participles. Many verbs have irregular past participles which do not end in –ed. For example : stolen, made, bought, written, etc.

e.g :

g). Clause : The money which was stolen in the robbery was never found.

     Phrase : The money stolen in the robbery was never found.

h). Clause : Most of the goods which are made in this factory are exported.

     Phrase : Most of the goods made in this factory are exported.

i). Clause  : The office which is located on Jln. Slamet Riyadi No. 3 is BCA.

    Phrase  : The office located on Jln. Slamet Riyadi No. 3 is BCA.

j). Clause  : Ann is the woman who is responsible for preparing the budget.

    Phrase  : Ann is the woman responsible for preparing the budget.

k).Clause  : The books that are on that shelf are mine.

    Phrase  : The books on that shelf are mine.

l). Clause  : The dictionary which is on the table is mine.

    Phrase  : The dictionary on the table is mine.

m).Clause : The books on this shelf, which most of them are about child education,

                  belong to  my sister in – law.

     Phrase : The books on this shelf, about child education,belong to my sister in –

                  law.

2.If there is no be form of a verb in the adjective clause, it is sometimes possible to omit the subject pronoun and change the verb to its – ing form.

a). Clause : English has an alphabet that consists of 26 letters.

     Phrase : English has an alphabet consisting of 26 letters.

b). Clause : Anyone who wants to come with us is welcome.

     Phrase : Anyone wanting to come with us is welcome.

c). Clause : The taxi driver who took me to the airport is very friendly.

     Phrase : The taxi driver  taking me to the airport is very friendly.

d). Clause : The young man who gave her mother special gift is Mr. Sam.

     Phrase : The young man giving her mother special gift is Mr. Sam.

e). Clause : What is the name of the young lady that comes to the post ofice every

                 morning ?

    Phrase : What is the name of the lady coming to the post office every morning ?

If the adjective clause requires commas, the adjective phrase also requires commas.

e.g :

George Washington, who was the first president of the United States, was a wealthy colonist and a general in the army.

George Washington, the first president of the United States, was a wealthy colonist and a general in the army.

G). USING ADJECTIVE CLAUSES TO MODIFY PRONOUNS.

Study these sentences below !

a). There is someone ( whom) I want you to meet.

b). Everything ( which )he said was pure nonsense.

c). Anybody (who) wants to come is welcome.

Adjective clauses can modify indefinite pronouns (e.g : someone, everybody ). Object pronouns ( e.g : whom, which ) are usually omitted in the adjective clause.

d). Paula was the only one I knew at the party.

e). Scholarships are available for those who need financial assistance.

Adjective clauses can modify the one(s) and those.

f). It is I who am responsible.

g). He who laughs last laughs best. ( = anyone / any person )

Adjective clauses rarely modify personal pronouns. In (f) is very formal and uncommon. In (g) is a well – known saying in which “ he “ is used as an indefinite pronoun ( meaning “ anyone “, “ any person “ ).

An adjective clause with which can also be used to modify the pronoun that. For examples :

= The bread my mother makes is much better than that which you can buy at a

   store.

Summary :

A).Defining Relative Clause :

For persons :

As :    Subject         : who / that

          Object                   : whom / who / that / -

          Possessive    : whose

For things :

 As :      Subject      : which / that

             Object       : which / that/-

             Possessive : whose / of which

B).Non Defining Relative Clause :

For persons :

 As :    Subject        : who

           Object         : whom / who

           Possessive   : whose

For things    :

 As :   Subject         : which

          Object                   : which

          Possesive     : whose ( for animals ) ; of which ( for things )

EXERCISES OF ADJECTIVE CLAUSE / ADJECTIVE PHRASE IN REPORT TEXTS :

1). Adjective phrase from adjective clause :

a). Adjective Clause : A tornado is a long cloud which ( that ) comes down from the

                               sky.

    Reduction Phrase : A tornado is a long cloud coming down from the sky.

b).Adjective Clause : A tornado  is shaped like a funnel and consists of wind which

                              whirls around and around extremely fast.

    Reduction Phrase :  A tornado  is shaped like a funnel and consists of wind

                                whirling  around and around extremely fast.

2).Adjective Phrase into Adjective Clause :

a). Adjective Phrase : Livers regulate the amount of vitamins and energy giving

                               sugar in the blood by storing them.

b). Adjective Clause : Livers regulate the amount of vitamins and energy which (

                               that ) give sugar in the blood by storing them.

3). Adjective Clause into Adjective Phrase :

a). Adjective Clause : A flood is a body of water that (which ) covers normally dry

                             lands.

    The sentence comes from two simple sentences. They are :

1.A flood is a body of water.

2. It covers normally dry lands.

b).Adjective Phrase : A flood is a body of water covering normally dry lands.

4).Reduction Phrase from adjective clause :

a).Adjective Clause : A volcano is a mountain which is formed by the eruption of

                              material from the earth’s interior through a central opening or

                              groups of openings.

b).Adjective Phrase : A volcano is a mountain formed by the eruption of material

                              from the earth’s interior through a central opening or groups of

                              openings.

OR :

Combine these two simple sentences into one complex sentence in Adjective Clause. Then reduce  ( make ) into Adjective Phrase !

1. A volcano is a mountain.

2. A volcano is formed by the eruption of material from the earth’s interior through a central opening or groups of openings.

Passive Adjective Clause and Adjective Phrase :

a).Adjective Clause : A volcano is a mountain which is formed by the eruption of

                            material from the earth’s interior through a central opening or

                            groups of openings.

b).Adjective Phrase : A volcano is a mountain formed by the eruption of material from the earth’s interior through a central opening or groups of openings.

5). Combine these two simple sentences into one complex sentence in Adjective  

    Clause. Then reduce  ( make ) into Adjective Phrase !

1. A tornado is a long cloud.
2. A tornado comes down from the sky.

a). Adjective Clause : A tornado is a long cloud which comes down from the sky.

b) Adjective Phrase :  A tornado is a long cloud coming down from the sky.

Sumber : My beloved english teacher, Mrs. Endang R ^^ :)
SMA Negeri 1 Kebumen.