What is a Relative Pronoun?
A relative pronoun is a type of pronoun that introduces a relative clause, and a relative clause is a dependent clause that provides additional information about a noun in the main clause of a sentence. The following words are relative pronouns: who, whom, whose, that, which, what.
Examples of Relative Pronouns
Some examples of relative pronouns (introducing adjective clauses) would be the following:
The crowd cheered the runner who broke last year’s record.
Her favorite homemade cookies, which have been awarded many prizes, have the perfect balance of chocolate and peanut butter.
Shandra, whose essay won first place, will attend our local college in the fall.
The class president will be Jerome, whom we met last summer at camp.
I reached for the bowl that was on the top shelf.
Why You Should Use Relative Pronouns in Your Writing
Because relative pronouns introduce dependent clauses that provide additional information about a noun in the main clause, there are a handful of relative pronouns that can be used for specific purposes:
Who/Whom – references a person
Which – references an animal or item
What – references a non-living item
That – references a person, animal, or item
The reason we might use these relative pronouns in our writing is to connect ideas that are related and to provide more detail in our writing. Compare the following two sentences:
She was one of the gymnasts.
She was one of the gymnasts who won the gold medal.
Notice how the second sentence with the relative pronoun (and subsequent adjective clause) provides much more insight into the unique aspect of the gymnast (ie, one who won a gold medal – not just any other gymnast).
Finally, be sure not to confuse relative pronouns with relative adverbs which are slightly different.
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