UCI Extension

Paper-Based TOEFL Workshop

Adjective Clauses
Structure and Written Expression Skills 11-12
Longman Preparation Course for the TOEFL Test
Tutorial prepared by Marla Yoshida

What is an adjective clause?

Review: An adjective is a word that describes or gives more
information about a noun.
I like to watch funny movies.
Big, juicy strawberries are delicious.
Careless drivers are dangerous and irresponsible.

What is an adjective clause?

A clause can also be used to describe or give more
information about a noun. We call this kind of clause an
adjective clause or a relative clause.
I like to watch movies [which make me laugh].
The strawberries [that I bought] were delicious.
People [who drive too fast] should be more careful.
The officials [whom we elected] have an important
job to do.
Do you know the man [whose picture is in the
newspaper]?
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Adjective clause connectors

An adjective clause usually comes right after the noun it
describes.
An adjective clause begins with one of these adjective
clause connectors:
who (for people)
whom
which (for things)
whose
that (for people or things)
(and sometimes no
connector)
Adjective clause connectors are also called relative
pronouns.

How do we know which connector to use?

Think about whether the connector refers to a person or a thing.
Who and whom refer only to people:
People [who drive too fast] should be more careful.
The officials [whom we elected] have an important job to do.
Which refers only to things:
I like to watch movies [which make me laugh].
That can refer to either people or things:
The strawberries [that I bought] were juicy and delicious.
Ill never forget the friends [that Ive met here].
Whose can also refer to either people or things:
Do you know the man [whose picture is in the newspaper]?
I want to visit a country [whose weather is warm].
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How do we know which connector to use?

Think about what the connector is doing inside its clause.
Sometimes the connector is the subject of the adjective
clause. When its a subject, we can use who, which, or that.

We cannot omit the connector when its a subject.

Children [who stay up late] will fall asleep in school.
Children [stay up late] will fall asleep in school.
No!
The car [which is parked over there] looks expensive.
The car [is parked over there] looks expensive.
No!
The student [that talked to me] seemed friendly.
The student [talked to me] seemed friendly.
No!
The clock [that is hanging on the wall] has stopped.
The clock [is hanging on the wall] has stopped.
No!
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How do we know which connector to use?

Sometimes the connector is the object of the adjective clause.
When its an object, we can use whom, which, or that.
(In informal speaking or writing we can also use who, but its
better to use whom on the TOEFL.)
When the connector is an object, we can omit it.
The movie [which we saw] was really scary.
The movie [we saw] was really scary.
The secretary [whom they hired] is good with computers.
The secretary [they hired] is good with computers.
Did you taste the spaghetti [that I cooked]?
Did you taste the spaghetti [I cooked]?

Adjective clauses with prepositions

Sometimes the connector is the object of a preposition in the
adjective clause. In this case, we can use whom, which, or that.

We can use two word order patterns:

1) The hotel [in which we stayed] was very luxurious.
Tell me the name of the man [to whom you spoke].
2) The hotel [which we stayed in] was very luxurious.
Tell me the name of the man [whom you spoke to].
When we use the second pattern, we can omit the connector,
but not if the we use the first pattern.
The hotel [we stayed in] was very luxurious.
Tell me the name of the man [you spoke to].
The hotel [in we stayed] was very luxurious.
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Is the verb singular or plural?

When a connector is the subject of an adjective clause, its
verb might be singular or plural. We have to look at the
noun that the connector refers to. The verb has to match
that noun.
The book [that explains English grammar] is mine.
singular
noun
here

singular
verb here

and here

The books [that explain English grammar] are mine.

plural
noun
here

plural
verb here

and here

Restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses

When we see an adjective clause, sometimes there are no
commas around it:
#1. Cities [that are safe] are good places to live.

And sometimes there are commas:

#2. Irvine , [which is a very safe city] , is a good
place to live.

Restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses

#1. Cities [that are safe] are good places to live.
Adjective clauses with no commas, like #1, are called
restrictive adjective clauses. We need the information in
them to understand what the whole sentence is about.
(Were not saying that all cities are good places to live,
only cities that are safe.) The adjective clause restricts,
or limits, the number of things that the sentence is
talking about.

Restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses

#2. Irvine, [which is a very safe city] , is a good place
to live.
Adjective clauses with commas, like #2, are called
nonrestrictive adjective clauses. We dont need the
information in the clause to understand which thing the
sentence is talking about. Theres only one Irvine, and
thats the one were talking about. The adjective clause
just gives us extra information.

Summary
In this section, you have learned about these things:
An adjective clause is a clause that describes or gives
more information about a noun.
Adjective clauses are also called relative clauses.
An adjective clause begins with an adjective clause
connector (a relative pronoun).
To choose the right connector, we have to think about
whether it refers to a person or a thing, and what role it
plays in the clause.
We can omit an adjective clause connector when its
the object of the clause, but not when its a subject.
Commas can tell us whether an adjective clause is
restrictive or nonrestrictive.