B2 grammar · teens and adults
Relative clauses
Who, which, that, where, whose: adding information about a noun. Defining and non-defining clauses, when to drop the pronoun, and why commas matter.
Teens · AdultsCEFR B2 · Upper-intermediate
- Age
- Ages 14+
- Level
- B2
- Skill
- Grammar
- Format
- Teacher guide
The rule
- Defining clauses say which one we mean, with no commas: The colleague who sits next to me is leaving. Without the clause, we would not know who.
- Non-defining clauses add extra information between commas: My brother, who is a pilot, lives in Dubai. The sentence still works without them.
- Who for people, which for things, whose for possession, where for places, when for times. In defining clauses that can replace who or which.
- That is not possible in non-defining clauses: My phone, which is new, … — not My phone, that is new, …
- In defining clauses you can drop who, which or that when it is the object: The film (that) we watched was great. Not when it is the subject: The man who lives here, not The man lives here.
Form
| Use | Form |
|---|---|
| People | who / that |
| Things | which / that |
| Possession | whose + noun |
| Places and times | where · when |
| Non-defining | , who / which … , (never that) |
Example sentences
Tap a sentence to hear it. The translation follows each one.
Quick check: choose the right form
Five sentences from this page, each with one gap. Choose the form that fits; when it is right, you hear the whole sentence.
The café blank we first met has closed.
I have a friend blank brother is a famous chef.
Barcelona, blank I visited in May, was full of tourists.
Do you remember the day blank we missed the last train?
Students blank submit late lose ten points.
Common mistakes
What learners actually say, why, and which first language makes it typical.
Typical for Russian speakers
The man which lives next door is a pilot.The man who lives next door is a pilot.
People take who (or that). Russian «который» covers people and things alike, so which slips in for people.
Typical for Spanish speakers
My phone, that is only a year old, has stopped working.My phone, which is only a year old, has stopped working.
Between commas (extra information) use which or who, never that. Spanish «que» works in both kinds of clause, so learners use that everywhere.
This is the book that I told you about it.This is the book that I told you about.
The relative pronoun already stands for the book, so there is no extra it. The slip is most common when a preposition ends the clause.
The woman lives upstairs is a doctor.The woman who lives upstairs is a doctor.
You can drop the pronoun only when it is the object (the film we watched). Here who is the subject of lives, so it must stay.
How to teach it
- Definitions game: one learner defines a word with a relative clause (It's a place where you can borrow books. It's someone who fixes pipes.), the others guess. Works with job titles, tech words and slang.
- Commas change meaning: compare My brother who lives in London is a doctor (I have more than one brother) with My brother, who lives in London, is a doctor (I have one). Draw both families.
- Sentence joining: give two short sentences (I met a woman. She speaks six languages.) and ask for one. Then remove the pronoun wherever it is possible.
Questions teachers ask
Who or that for people?
Both are correct in defining clauses, and who is more usual. In non-defining clauses only who.
Why is this page B2?
Defining clauses with who, which, that and where are B1. Non-defining clauses, whose, and dropping the pronoun are B2 — and the page covers all of them.
Do I need to teach whom?
For recognition only. Whom appears in formal writing (the person to whom I spoke); in speech, who or no pronoun is normal: the person I spoke to.
Related resources
Worksheet
Relative clauses — worksheet
Put the verb in the right form, build the sentence, choose the correct one — answers at the bottom.
Presentation
Relative Clauses Presentation (Free PPT)
Relative Clauses presentation (B2) for teens and adults: the rule, a form table, 10 examples and practice with answers. Free PPTX and PDF.
Lesson Plan
Must, might and can't (deduction)
Guessing from evidence: She must be at work. He might be stuck in traffic. That can't be right. How sure you are, in one small word, now and in the past.
Lesson Plan
Used to and would
Past habits and old states: I used to live in Lisbon. We would stay up all night. When both work, when only used to does, and the be used to trap.