- Adjective clauses begin with a relative pronoun that functions as the subject or object of the clause. For subjects, "who" or "that" are used for people and "which" or "that" are used for things. For objects, "whom" or "that" are used for people and "which" or "that" are used for things. - There are two types of adjective clauses: identifying/restrictive clauses that provide essential information and don't use commas, and nonidentifying/nonrestrictive clauses that provide additional information and require commas. - The relative pronoun can sometimes be omitted in identifying clauses where it functions as the object. Adjective

1. Adjective Clauses
GRAMMAR THAT MAKES YOU CRAZY!

2. Where does the clause begin?
Adjective clauses begin with a relative pronoun (subordinator) that functions as the subject of
the clause.
Subject Pronouns:
◦ For people: use “who” or “that”
◦ For things or places: use “which” or “that”

3. Examples:
The people who were at the amusement park were having a great time!
The banana that I ate today was bad.
Last year, I visited the Taj Mahal, which was bigger than I thought it would be.

4. There is a difference between pronouns that function as
subjects of a sentence and pronouns that are used as
subjects of a dependent adjective clause.
Subject Pronouns Relative Pronouns
I Who
You Which
He/She/It That
We Whose
They Whom
Only one pronoun can be used as the subject of an adjective clause.
Incorrect: I gave a banana that it was bad to my dog.

5. Types of Adjective Clauses
Identifying/Restrictive:
◦ Provide essential information (“That’s the one I’m talking about”)
◦ No commas necessary; clauses are joined
Nonidentifying/Nonrestrictive:
◦ Provide additional addition (“By the way…”)
◦ Commas necessary; adjective clause is free to be set apart
*Do not use “that” to introduce nonidentifying (non-essential) information!

6. Examples
Identifying Adjective Clause:
◦ The car that has a broken headlight belongs to my dad.
◦ Chicago is the city which has the third largest population in the U.S.
Nonidentifying Adjective Clause:
◦ The car, which has a broken headlight, belongs to my dad.
◦ Chicago, which has the third largest population in the U.S., is a favorite destination for tourists.

7. More Examples
Identifying or nonidentifying?
◦ She is the teacher whose class I enjoy the most.
◦ The teacher, whose class I enjoy, is the youngest teacher in the Engineering Department.
◦ President Obama, who loves his family, eats dinner with his wife and daughters every night.
◦ President Obama is a man who loves his family and makes time for them every night.

8. Where does the clause begin?
Adjective clauses can begin with a relative pronoun that functions as the object of the clause.
◦ For people: use “whom” or “that”
◦ Robert, whom I met last week, has agreed to be my research partner.
◦ The owner of the new coffee shop is the same woman that I used to see at Starbucks.
◦ For things or places: use “which” or “that”
◦ I loved the book that you recommended to me.
◦ The book I just finished, which you recommended to me, was the best book I have read.

9. What’s missing?
“I read the book she wrote.”
You can leave out a relative pronoun in an adjective clause IF:
◦ the pronoun functions as the object of the clause, AND
◦ The adjective clause is an identifying clause.
I read the book which she wrote. → I read the book she wrote.
He is the singer whom I met at the concert. → He is the singer I met at the concert.

10. More Adjective Phrases
An adjective clause can be shortened to an adjective phrase if:
◦ -the relative pronoun is the subject of the dependent clause, AND
◦ -the verb of the clause is a form of the “be” verb
◦ Ex: The student who is sitting in front of me needs to wake up!
↓
The student sitting in front of me needs to wake up!

11. When and Where
Adjective clauses may begin with “when” and “where”:
◦ That’s the restaurant where I got sick.
◦ I remember the day when I met my husband.
*You may leave out “when” and “that” in identifying adjective clauses referring to a time:
That was the day when I broke my arm. → That was the day I broke my arm.

12. Resources:
Information and examples can be found in:
Fuchs, Marjorie, and Margaret Bonner. Focus on Grammar: An Integrated Skills Approach. 3rd ed.
White Plains, NY: Pearson Longman, 2006. Print.
And at: http://faculty.deanza.edu/flemingjohn/stories/storyReader$20