Defining relative clauses

Use who, which, that, where and whose to identify exactly which person, thing or place you mean.

When do we use it?

Choose a suitable relative word and build essential defining information into one sentence.

Form

Use who for people, which for things, where for places and whose for possession; that can replace who or which.

• The woman who called is my aunt.
• This is the book that I bought.
• The café where we met is closed.

Key contrast

Read the whole context and identify the time, meaning, noun type or sentence structure before choosing.

Common mistakes

• The man which lives here. → The man who lives here.
• The place who we met. → The place where we met.

Remember

Use who, which, that, where and whose to identify exactly which person, thing or place you mean.

Quick check

• Find the grammar clue.
• Check the subject and verb form.
• Confirm that the answer fits both structure and meaning.