Practice
Relative pronouns: rules and examples
The neighbor who owns the red bicycle is moving next week. Who connects neighbor to the information that identifies that person.
Choose a relative pronoun that connects a noun to a clause, including who for people, which for things, whose for possession, and that in many defining clauses.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
relative pronoun /ˈrelətɪv ˈproʊnaʊn/
The short answer
Use who for a person, which for a thing, and whose to show possession. In many defining clauses, that can replace who or which. Use whom for a person who receives an action when a formal style calls for it.
The nurse who answered the phone was very patient.
Why it works: Who refers to nurse, the person who did the action of answering.
5 more examples
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The mechanic who repaired my car explained the problem clearly.
Who refers to mechanic, the person who performed the action.
Not this:The mechanic
whom I calledarrived before noon. What changes: Whom is the object of called. In everyday conversation, many speakers use who here instead. -
I found the document which contains the final schedule.
Which refers to document, a thing that is the subject of contains.
Not this:I found the document
that the manager requested. What changes: That refers to document, the thing the manager requested, in a defining clause. -
The student whose presentation won the prize thanked her teacher.
Whose shows that the presentation belongs to the student.
Not this:The student
who gave the presentationthanked her teacher. What changes: Who refers to the student as the person who gave the presentation. -
My phone, which I bought last year, still works well.
The commas show that the clause adds extra information about the phone.
Not this:The phone
that I bought last yearstill works well. What changes: Without commas, the clause identifies which phone the speaker means. -
The company whose offices are near the river is hiring interns.
Whose can show possession for an organization as well as for a person.
Not this:The company
that opened an office near the riveris hiring interns. What changes: That refers to company as the subject of opened in a defining clause.
Read the full guide
Find the noun before the clause. Then read the clause as a short sentence and ask what job the missing word has. Is it a person, a thing, or the owner of something? That check gives you the right relative pronoun.
Find the noun the clause describes
A relative clause follows the noun it describes. Read that noun first, then decide what kind of word can refer back to it. This prevents you from choosing by the word that comes immediately after the gap.
I spoke to the manager who handles customer complaints.
Who refers back to manager. The clause tells us which manager the speaker means.
Which noun does who describe in this sentence: The artist who painted the mural lives nearby?
It describes artist.
Use who and whom for people
Use who when the clause is about a person. Who often acts as the subject of the verb in the relative clause. Whom is an object form used mainly in formal writing; everyday speech usually uses who in that position.
The colleague who sent the email is away today.
Who is the subject of sent. The colleague did the sending.
Choose the formal object form: The guest to ___ we spoke was from Brazil.
Use whom: The guest to whom we spoke was from Brazil. In everyday speech, many people say the guest who we spoke to.
Use which or that for things
Use which for a thing or animal. In a defining clause, that is also common for people or things. A defining clause tells the listener exactly which noun you mean.
The route that passes the museum is faster.
That refers to route and identifies the particular route the speaker means.
Choose the pronoun: The recipe ___ uses lentils is easy to follow.
Use which or that: The recipe which uses lentils is easy to follow.
Use whose to show ownership
Use whose when the clause needs to say that something belongs to the noun before it. The owner can be a person, an animal, or an organization. Whose comes before the thing that is owned.
We met a family whose dog followed us to the gate.
Whose dog means the dog belongs to the family.
Complete the sentence: I know a writer ___ books are translated into Spanish.
Use whose: I know a writer whose books are translated into Spanish.
Use commas to check whether that fits
A clause between commas gives extra information. Use who for a person or which for a thing in this kind of clause. Do not use that after a comma.
Our train, which leaves at seven, is already on the platform.
Which adds a detail about one known train. The commas show that the clause does not identify the train.
Choose the word: My uncle, ___ lives in Seattle, is visiting this weekend.
Use who: My uncle, who lives in Seattle, is visiting this weekend.
Before you go
Remember this
Start with the noun before the clause. Use who for people, which for things, and whose for possession. Use that in many defining clauses, but keep who or which after a comma. Check whether the pronoun is the subject or object before deciding whether it can be omitted.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
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Try the written questionsQuestions about "Relative pronouns: rules and examples"
When should I use who instead of that?
Use who when you want to refer clearly to a person. That is also common for people in a defining clause, but who is needed after a comma and often sounds more natural when the person is the focus.
The mechanic who repaired my car explained the problem clearly.
Can I use whom in everyday English?
You can use whom, especially after a preposition or in formal writing. In ordinary conversation, who is much more common when the person receives the action, and many speakers move the preposition to the end.
The mechanic whom I called arrived before noon.
Can whose refer to a thing or a company?
Yes. Whose can show possession for a person, an animal, an object, or an organization. It is useful when you need to connect an owner with the thing that belongs to that owner.
I found the document which contains the final schedule.
Why can I omit that in some relative clauses?
You can often omit a relative pronoun when it is the object of the clause, as in the book I borrowed. Do not omit it when the pronoun is the subject, because the clause would lose its subject.
I found the document that the manager requested.
Why is that wrong after a comma?
A clause after a comma adds extra information instead of identifying the noun. Standard careful writing uses who for people or which for things in that position, rather than that.
The student whose presentation won the prize thanked her teacher.