Mastering the use of who, which, that or Ø in English sentences

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vmbo t, havo
• Leerjaar 2

Mastering the use of who, which, that or Ø in English sentences

Learning Objective

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to properly use the relative pronouns (betrekkelijke voornaamwoorden)

 who, which, that, or Ø in an English sentence.

Definition relative pronouns

Who refers to people, which refers to things and animals, that can refer to either, and Ø is used when the relative pronoun is not needed in the sentence.

Examples of Who

Who is used to refer to people. 

Example: The girl who won the race is my friend.

Examples of Which

Which is used to refer to things and animals. 

Example: The car which is parked outside is mine.

Examples of That

That can refer to either people, things or animals. 

Example: The book that I read is very interesting.

Examples of Ø

Ø is used when the relative pronoun is not needed in the sentence. 

Example: The boy I saw yesterday was my neighbor.

Combinations

Combinations that are nearly always possible:

who / that

which / that

which / that / Ø

Combination which is NEVER possible:

who / which

Practice Exercises

Write down all possible relative pronouns in the sentence. 

The dog ______ barked at me is my friend's pet. (that, which, who, Ø)

Deze relative pronouns gebruik je voor dieren en dingen.

1. who, which
2. whose, that
3. which, that
4. which, whose

My sister, _______ is 11 years old, is smart.

1. who
2. which
3. that
4. Ø

The book ______ you gave me is great.

1. who
2. which
3. which / that / Ø
4. which / that

She's the football coach _______ I admire the most.

1. who
2. which
3. that
4. Ø

I really like the suit........... you bought for the wedding

1. who
2. which, that, Ø
3. which, who, that
4. Ø, who

Review

In summary, who is used to refer to people, which refers to things, that can refer to either, and Ø is used when the relative pronoun is not needed in the sentence.

Remember, in most tests you will be asked to give 

ALL POSSIBLE OPTIONS.

Write down the most important thing you learned in this lesson.

Over to you...

Do you want to practise more with relative pronouns? 

Unit 5, Catch Up, Exercise 6, 7 and 8 (ONLINE)

Do you want to continue with Bristol Murder?

Continue with your creative assignment / individual assignment.