Adjective Clause is a dependent clause used adjective within a sentences to describe noun. Relative pronoun usually used to introduce an adjective clause. We can said Relative pronoun as a adjective clause mean clause used as an adjective to explain the noun or pronoun condition. Adjective clause usually begins with a Relative pronoun like which, that, who, whom, whose and a relative adverb like where, when, why.
Relative pronoun is a pronoun that introduces a relative clause. It is called relative pronoun cause it relates to the word or sentences that it modifies.Relative Pronoun :
· Which, replace nouns and pronouns that refer to animals or things. It cann't replace nouns and pronouns that refer to people. It can be the subject of a verb. It can also be the object of a verb or preposition.
· That, replace nouns and pronouns that refer to people, animals or things. It can be the subject of a verb. It can also be the object of a verb or preposition.
· Who, replace nouns and pronouns that refer to people. It cann't replace nouns and pronouns that refer to animals or things. It can be the subject of a verb.
· Whom, replace nouns and pronouns that refer to people. It cannot replace nouns and pronouns that refer to animals or things. It can be the object of a verb or preposition. It cannot be the subject of a verb.
· Whose, replace possessive forms of nouns and pronouns. It can refer to people, animals or things. It can be part of a subject or part of an object of a verb or preposition, but it cannot be a complete subject or object.
Relative Adverb :
- When, replace a time like in+year, in+month, on+day. It cann't be a subject but it can be eliminated.
- Where, replaces a places like in+area, in+city, at+school. It cann't be a subject but it can be eliminated. in a preposition like at, in, to usually must be added.
· Why, replaces a reason for something to explain. Iit cann't be a subject but it can be eliminated.
Turning Adjective Clauses into Phrases
An adjective clause with a subject pronoun - such as which, that or who - can also be shortened into a phrase.
You can shorten an adjective clause in two ways:
- Omit the subject pronoun and verb.
- Omit the subject pronoun and change the verb to the form ending in "ing."
Here are some examples of how to create an adjective phrase:
Adjective Clause: The books, which are lost, are not really necessary.
Adjective Phrase: The books lost are not really necessary.
Adjective Clause: The girl who is running is my best friend.
Adjective Phrase: The girl running is my best friend
Examples of adjective clause :
- Pizza, which most people love, is not very healthy.
- The people whose names are on the list will go to camp.
- Grandpa remembers the old days when there was no television.
- Fruit that is grown organically is expensive.
- Students who are intelligent get good grades.
- Eco-friendly cars that run on electricity save gas.
- I know someone whose father served in World War II.
- Making noise when he eats is the main reason why Sue does not like to eat with her brother.
Example a part of article containing the adjective clause (underline) :
Computers and Education in America
Computers do allow students to
expand their learning beyond the classroom, but the distance learning is not a
utopia. Some businesses, such as Hewlett Packard, do have mentoring programs
with children in the schools, but those mentoring programs are not available to
all students. Distance learning has always been a dream of administrators,
eager to figure out a cheaper way to deliver education. They think that little
Eva and Johnny are going to learn about Japanese culture or science or algebra
in the evening when they could be talking with their friends on the phone or
watching television. As education critic Neil Postman points out, these
administrators are not imagining a new technology but a new kind of child:
"In [the administrator's] vision, there is a confident and typical sense
of unreality. Little Eva can't sleep, so she decides to learn a little algebra?
Where does little Eva come from? Mars?" Only students from some distant
planet would prefer to stick their nose in a computer rather than watch TV or
go to school and be with their friends.
Their short attention spans, their
unwillingness to explore subjects in depth, their poor reading and evaluation
skills. Computers also tend to isolate students, to turn them into computer
geeks who think cyberspace is actually real. Some students have found they have
a serious and addictive case of "Webaholism," where they spend hours
and hours on the computer at the expense of their family and friends.
Unfortunately, computers tend to separate, not socialize students. Finally, we
need to think about who has the most to gain or lose from computers in the
schools. Are administrators getting more students "taught" for less
money? Are big companies training a force of computer worker bees to run their
businesses? Will corporate CEO's use technology to isolate and control their
employees?
Like all cults, this one has the
intention of enlisting mindless allegiance and acquiescence. People who have no
clear idea of what they mean by information or why they should want so much of
it are nonetheless prepared to believe that we live in an Information Age,
which makes every computer around us what the relics of the True Cross were in
the Age of Faith: emblems of salvation.
--Dudley Erskine Devlin--
Questions and Answers of the excercises :
1. I talked to the woman she was sitting next to me
I talked to the woman who was sitting next to me
2. I have a class it begins at 08.00 Am
I have a class which begins at 08.00 Am
3. The man called the police his car was stolen
The man whose car was stolen called the police
4. The building is very old he lives there
The building where he lives is very old
5. The woman was ms Silvy I saw her
The woman whom I saw was ms Silvy
Reference :
http://grammar.about.com/od/rs/g/relativeclterm.htm
http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/adjectiveclause.htm
http://faculty.deanza.edu/flemingjohn/stories/storyReader$20
http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-relative.htm
http://www.englishpractice.com/grammar/relative-adverbs/
http://grammar.about.com/od/ab/g/adjclterm.htm
http://eslbee.com/AdjClauses.htm
http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/adj.htm
http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/documents/standsum/com3a2a.cfm
