CONTRAST

       DEFINING                                       NON-DEFINING

 
  • The relative clause tells us which person or thing the speaker means.ie, they define the antecedent

The man who lives next door is a singer
I worked for a company that went bankrupt

  • We do not use commas

 

 

  • The relative doesnīt tell us which person or thing the speaker means . We already know. They give extra , additional information.

  My brother , who lives in Ireland, is a doctor
We went to Bali, which is is a paradise

  • We use commas(,)

 

In both types "who" is used for people and "which " for things. But:

 

  • We can use "that"

 The man who/that lives next door is a singer
I worked for a company which/that went bankrupt

  • We can leave out the relative pronoun when it's he object.

          We went to an island (that/which)I had seen in a postcard

  • "Whom" is not often used. It's too formal

 

  • We cannot use "that"

We went to Bali, which is is a paradise

  • We cannot leave out "who" or "which"

  • You can use "whom" when itīs the object

Yesterday I met Mike, whom/who I hadnīt seen for ages

EXERCISES

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3