Relative Pronouns

Relative pronouns introduce the relative clause. They are used to make clear what is being talked about in a sentence. They describe something more about the subject or the object.

The relative pronouns are:

Subject	Object	Possession	Uncertainty
Which	Which	Whose	Whichever —- (for things)
That	That		—- (for both things and people)
Who	Whom	Whose	Whoever/whomever/whosever —- (for person)

Example:

Who – used for people:

• The woman who lives next door is a doctor.
• He is the one who found my keys.

Whom – used for people (as the object of a verb or preposition):

• She is the person whom we hired last week.
• To whom did you give the book?

Whose – used to show possession, for both people and things:

• The man whose car was stolen reported it to the police.
• The house, whose roof is red, belongs to my friend.

Which – used for animals and things:

• The book, which is on the table, is mine.
• The dog, which barks loudly, belongs to my neighbor.

That – used for people, animals, and things (can often be used instead of “who,” “whom,” or “which”):

• The car that I bought is blue.
• He is the man that helped me.