Relative Clauses

Introduction


1 In which sentence does "which" stand for the word "terrorism"?
We discussed the proposal of performing a strip search to deter airline terrorism, which outraged us to the point of madness.
We discussed the proposal, which outraged us to the point of madness, of performing a strip search to deter airline terrorism.
We discussed the proposal of performing strip searches, which outraged us to the point of madness, to deter terrorism.
2 In which sentence does "which" stand for "the proposal"?
We discussed the proposal of performing a strip search to deter airline terrorism, which outraged us to the point of madness.
We discussed the proposal, which outraged us to the point of madness, of performing a strip search to deter airline terrorism.
We discussed the proposal of performing strip searches, which outraged us to the point of madness, to deter terrorism.
3 In the following sentence, what does the word "which" stand for?

Benjamin Franklin proposed the turkey as the official bird of the United States rather than the bald eagle, which feeds on carrion and carries lice.
the turkey
the United States
the bald eagle
4 In which sentence does the pronoun "who" stand for "Adolf Hitler"?
Adolf Hitler, who displayed in his office a full-length portrait of Henry Ford, was grateful to the American inventor for manufacturing ball bearings for the Nazis throughout the war.
Adolf Hitler admired the great American inventor who displayed in his office a full-length portrait of Henry Ford.
5 In the next exercise you will be asked to combine sentences, turning nouns into relative pronouns (which, who, that). This is how sentence-combining exercises work. First you are given a pair of sentences containing some repeated element:

Chinese girls worked in a factory.
The factory manufactured shirts.

You are then to combine the sentences and eliminate the repetition by using WHICH for non-human words and WHO for human ones:

Combination: Chinese girls worked in a factory which manufactured shirts.
(You can use that instead of which if you prefer.)

If the repeated element is the last phrase in the first sentence, the two ideas can be laid out end to end, as above, but if the repeated element is anywhere else in the first sentence, the added material will be EMBEDDED inside the first sentence:

Chinese girls worked in that factory.
The Chinese girls were desperate for money.

Combination: Chinese girls who were desperate for money worked in that factory.

Now you combine a pair in your head:

This bill will never pass the senate.
The senate is the most liberal we have seen in a long time.
This bill, which is the most liberal we have seen in a long time, will never pass the senate.
This bill will never pass the senate, which is the most liberal we have seen in a long time
6 Now combine three sentences. You can use scratch paper if you like. Be sure to take the first sentence as the core of your structure, expanding it with two WHICH clauses. Thus, your sentence should begin with the words "The pants," and the verb for this subject must be "match."

The pants match the shoes.
The pants fit best.
The shoes are too large.
The pants which fit best match the shoes which are too large.
The pants which are too large match the shoes which fit best.
The shoes which the pants which fit best match are too large.
The pants which match the shoes which are too large fit best.
7 Old 78s are highly collectible records.
Old 78s actually play at speeds from 71 to 100 r.p.m.
Old 78s are highly collectible records which actually play at speeds from 71 to 100 r.p.m.
Old 78s, which actually play at speeds from 71 to 100 r.p.m., are highly collectible records.
8 Up until now, regardless of where you inserted the WHICH or WHO clause, that pronoun was the subject of the embedded clause. Pants fit=which fit or 78s play=which play. But the pronoun in the embedded clause isn't always a subject. In the following examples it is an object. It still comes first, though, so you won't notice much difference.

Which sentence, "A" or "B," correctly represents the combined meaning of these two propositions?
I bought my relatives many gifts while on foreign vacations.
I couldn't afford the vacations.
I bought my relatives many gifts while on foreign vacations which I couldn't afford.
I bought my relatives many gifts which I couldn't afford while on foreign vacations.
9 The telegram was lost in the fallen leaves.
A gust of wind blew away the telegram.
The telegram was lost in the fallen leaves which a gust of wind blew away.
The telegram which a gust of wind blew away was lost in the fallen leaves.
10 You may have noticed that commas are sometimes used and sometimes not used in the sentences involving which, who, and that. This variation is not random but is subject to rule. For example, the following two sentences have very different meanings:

Old 78s which actually play not at 78 r.p.m. but at speeds higher or lower than 78 are highly collectible.
Old 78s, which actually play not at 78 r.p.m. but at speeds higher or lower than 78, are highly collectible.

The first sentence asserts that only the odd-speed records are collectible, while the second says that all 78s are collectible. The second sentence also denies the existence of any records that play exactly at 78 r.p.m., and since this is not the case, this sentence is in effect a lie. The next exercise explores this subtlety.
Please click on the NEXT button below.
Please click on the NEXT button below.