RELATIVE PRONOUN

Relative Pronouns

Relative clauses with who/which

who: when we talk about people
which: when we talk about things
whose: instead of his/her or their

We also use that for who/which.

A relative pronoun is a pronoun that introduces a relative clause. It is called a "relative" pronoun because it "relates" to the word that it modifies. Here is an example:

The person who phoned me last night is my teacher.

In the above example, "who":

relates to "person", which it modifies
introduces the relative clause "who phoned me last night"

There are five relative pronouns: who, whom, whose, which, that*

Who (subject) and whom (object) are generally only for people. Whose is for possession. Which is for things. In non-defining relative clauses, that is used for things. In defining relative clauses (clauses that are essential to the sentence and do not simply add extra information) that can be used for things andpeople**.

Relative pronouns can refer to singular or plural, and there is no difference between male and female.

Look at these examples showing defining and non-defining relative clauses:

	example sentences S=subject, O=object, P=possessive		notes
defining relative clauses	S	- The person who phoned me last night is my teacher. - The person that phoned me last night is my teacher.	That is preferable
	S	- The car which hit me was yellow. - The car that hit me was yellow.	That is preferable
	O	- The person whom I phoned last night is my teacher. - The people who I phoned last night are my teachers. - The person that I phoned last night is my teacher. - The person I phoned last night is my teacher.	Whom is correct but formal. The relative pronoun is optional.
	O	- The car which I drive is old. - The car that I drive is old. - The car I drive is old.	That is preferable to which. The relative pronoun is optional.
	P	- The student whose phone just rang should stand up. - Students whose parents are wealthy pay extra.
	P	- The police are looking for the carwhose driver was masked. - The police are looking for the car of which the driver was masked.	Whose can be used with things. Of which is also possible.
non-defining relative clauses	S	- Mrs Pratt, who is very kind, is my teacher.
	S	- The car, which was a taxi, exploded. - The cars, which were taxis, exploded.
	O	- Mrs Pratt, whom I like very much, is my teacher. - Mrs Pratt, who I like very much, is my teacher.	Whom is correct but formal. Who is common in spoken English and informal written English.
	O	- The car, which I was driving at the time, suddenly caught fire.
	P	- My brother, whose phone you just heard, is a doctor.
	P	- The car, whose driver jumped out just before the accident, was completely destroyed. - The car, the driver of which jumped out just before the accident, was completely destroyed.	Whose can be used with things. Of which is also possible.

*Not all grammar sources count "that" as a relative pronoun.
**Some people claim that even in defining relative clauses we cannot use "that" for people but must use "who/whom". There is no good reason for such a claim; there is a long history of "that" for people in defining relative clauses from Chaucer, Shakespeare and the Authorized Version of The Bible toFowler's and Churchill.

QUESTION TAG :)

A question tag can be made by making a statement and putting an auxiliary verb and a pronoun at the end:

QUESTION TAG EXAMPLES:

She's coming, isn't she?

She wasn't there, was she?

positive statement ->question tag negative - You are Tom, aren't you?
negative statement->question tag positive - He isn't Joe, is he?

Examples

with auxiliaries
You've got a car, haven't you?

without auxiliaries (use: don't, doesn't, didn't)
They play football on Sundays, don't they?
She plays football on Sundays, doesn't she?
They played football on Sundays, didn't they?

Questions tags are used to keep a conversation going. You can agree or refuse to a sentence with a question tag.

You go to school, don't you?
You agree.	You refuse.
Yes, I do.	No, I don't.

You aren't from Germany, are you?
You agree.	You refuse.
No, I'm not.	Yes, I am.

Questions tags - Special

Although the negative word not is not in the sentence, the sentence can be negative. Then we use the "positive" question tag.

He never goes out with his dog, does he?

have is a main verb in the sentence -> two possibilities

We have a car, _____?
We have a car, haven't we?	We have a car, don't we?
mostly British English	mostly American English

We use will/would with the imperative (Simple Present).

Open the window, will you?
Open the window, would you?

Don't open your books, will you?

We use won't with a polite request.

Open the window, won't you?

We use shall after Let's.

Let's take the next bus, shall we?

Auxiliary must

We must be at home at 8 pm, mustn't we?
Yes, we must.	No, we needn't.

Procedure adding a question tag

Look at the sentence.
1	Is an auxiliary or a form of to be in the sentence?
	yes	no
	auxiliary or form of to be affirmative -> negate auxiliary (add n't) auxiliary or form of to be negative -> (delete n't)	affirmative sentence -> Negate sentence (e.g. don't; doesn't; didn't) negative sentence -> (delete n't)
2	Is a personal pronoun the subject of the sentence?
	yes	no
	Use the personal pronoun.	Form the personal pronoun.
3	Complete the sentence.

Example 1: He can play football, ________.
1	Is an auxiliary or a form of to be in the sentence?
	yes -> can
	auxiliary or form of to be affirmative -> negate auxiliary (add n't) can't
2	Is a personal pronoun the subject of the sentence?
	yes
	Use the personal pronoun.
3	He can play football, can't he?

Example 2: Peter can play football, ________.
1	Is an auxiliary or a form of to be in the sentence?
	yes -> can
	auxiliary or form of to be affirmative -> negate auxiliary (add n't) can't
2	Is a personal pronoun the subject of the sentence?
		no
		Form the personal pronoun. Peter -> he
3	Peter can play football, can't he?

Example 3: Peter plays football, ________.
1	Is an auxiliary or a form of to be in the sentence?
		no
		affirmative sentence -> Negate the verb. verb plays -> Negation: doesn't play We only use the auxiliary doesn't.
2	Is a personal pronoun the subject of the sentence?
		no
		Form the personal pronoun. Peter -> he
3	Peter plays football, doesn't he?

WHAT IS GERUND ?

GERUND

A GERUND is a verb in its "ing" form (the present participle); for example, raining, dancing, laughing, thinking, creating, running, and so on.
By definition, they are activities . either physical or mental.
These words function as NOUNS in a sentence:

The subject of the verb:          Swimming is a lot of fun and good exercise.
The object of the verb:            I really like swimming.
The object of a preposition:   I am looking forward to swimming in the ocean.

1 GERUNDS AS THE SUBJECT OF THE SENTENCE
Any activity that can be expressed with the "ing" form of a verb can be the subject of a sentence.
All gerunds can be the subject of a sentence.

Breathing is necessary.Driving a car requires good vision.Helping other people feels good.

2 GERUNDS AS THE OBJECT OF A PREPOSITION
Prepositions (for, with, about, &) must be followed by an object.
The object can be a noun or a gerund (a verb acting as a noun).

I am tired of waking up too early.
I look forward to meeting your friend.
I am interested in learning baseball.
She is responsible for implementing new policy.

1    Verb + Preposition
Here are some verbs plus a preposition followed by a gerund:

to complain about __________ing
to insist on __________ing
to participate in __________ing
to apologize for __________ing
to object to __________ing
to look forward to __________ing
to think of __________ing
to win by __________ing
to take part in __________ing

2    Verb + Object + PrepositionHere are some verbs plus an object plus a preposition followed by a gerund:

to have difficulty in __________ing
to take advantage of __________ing
to have a good reason for __________ing
to prevent someone from __________ing
to keep someone from __________ing
to stop someone from __________ing
to thank someone for __________ing
to blame someone for __________ing
to accuse someone of __________ing
to charge someone with __________ing
to fine someone for __________ing

3     To Be + Adjective + Preposition Here are some combinations of the verb "to be" plus an adjective plus a preposition followed by a gerund:

to be accustomed to __________ing
to be interested in __________ing
to be excited about __________ing
to be capable of __________ing
to be responsible for __________ing
to be used to __________ing
to be tired of __________ing
to be bored with __________ing
to be good for __________ing
to be good at __________ing
to be bad at __________ing
to be guilty of __________ing

4 To Be + Noun + Preposition
Here are some combinations of the verb "to be" plus an object plus a preposition followed by a gerund:

to be a victim of __________ing
to be an advocate of __________ing
to be a believer in __________ing
to be a supporter of __________ing
to be a critic of __________ing

3 GERUNDS AS THE OBJECT OF A VERB
When it comes to gerunds as the object of a verb, not all verbs are equal.
That is, some verbs can take a gerund as their objects, but other verbs cannot.
(Some verbs can take infinitives as their objects. Some verbs never take an object at all.)
These differences can only be learned, as individual vocabulary items.

Verb + Gerund:
Here are some verbs that are followed by a gerund.
(These verbs can be followed by any gerund. The gerunds used in these sentences are only examples.)

I admit losing the combination to the safe.
I advise finding a good lawyer.
I don't anticipate waiting very much longer.
I appreciate hearing a good joke.
I avoid flying as much as I can.
Would you consider selling your share of the company?
We will delay signing an agreement.
I deny saying that.
We must discuss hiring more people.
I dislike eating alone.
I enjoy talking with new people.
I fear losing his confidence.
When I finish typing this, I'll help you.
I gave up explaining my position to them.
I often go dancing.
I can't help thinking that we could have done better.
I can't imagine spending that much money.
Business trips involve waiting in airports and staying in hotels.
They keep saying that, but they don't do anything about it.
Did I mention seeing him yesterday?
I don't mind working on the weekend.
I will miss seeing you around.
They postponed starting construction until next year.
You should practice using set phrases.
I quit smoking six years ago.
I recall meeting him a long time ago.
I don't recollect being there.
I recommend having the New York steak.
I resent having to sign in each morning.
I couldn't resist telling them.
We should not risk losing their trust.
I hope they stop making so much noise so I can get some sleep.
He suggested starting my own agency.
They won't tolerate trading insider information.

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Sunday, December 9, 2012