Year 6 English: Relative clauses with the relative pronoun left out
Part of the Year 6 English relative clauses and expanded noun phrases chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
Relative clauses with the relative pronoun left out
Sometimes the relative pronoun can be left out, when the noun is the object of the clause. For example, The book I read is the same as The book that I read. The pronoun that is left out is shown in brackets in the box below.
The pronoun can be left out
| With the pronoun | Left out |
|---|---|
| The book that I read was funny. | The book I read was funny. |
| The song that we sang was loud. | The song we sang was loud. |
| The game that we played was fun. | The game we played was fun. |
Key ideas
- A relative pronoun can be left out when the noun is the object of the clause.
- The sentence must still make sense without the pronoun.
- Do not leave out the pronoun when the clause is the subject: The man who lives here is kind.
Method. Find the noun, then the words after it that form the clause.
- Find the noun. The cake is the noun the clause describes.the cake
- Find the clause. The words after the cake are my friend baked, with no pronoun.my friend baked
- Check the meaning. The clause still makes sense with the pronoun left out.my friend baked
- Write the answer. my friend baked
Check. my friend baked describes the cake. ✓
Method. Leave out the pronoun, because the coat is the object of the clause.
- Find the noun. The coat is the thing she lost.the coat
- Leave out the pronoun. The pronoun that is the object can be left out.The coat she lost
- Join the sentences. The clause she lost describes the coat.The coat she lost is blue.
- Write the answer. The coat she lost is blue.
Check. she lost describes the coat. ✓
Method. Look at what the clause does in the sentence.
- Find the clause. Who lives here is the clause.who lives here
- Decide. Who is the subject of lives, so the pronoun must stay.the pronoun is needed
- Check the sentence. Without who, the sentence would not make sense.yes
- Write the answer. yes
Check. The pronoun is needed because it is the subject. ✓
Watch out
Watch out: the pronoun can be left out only when it is the object. Keep who in The man who lives here, because who is the subject.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Ask your child to read a sentence aloud with the pronoun in it, then without it. Ask which version reads more smoothly.
Exercise 5C Practice: the relative pronoun left out
Method. Find the noun, then the two or three words that come straight after it.
- Find the noun. The noun is the thing the clause describes.book
- Copy the words that follow. The words after the noun form the clause, even though no pronoun is written.I read
- Write the answer. I read
Check. I read describes the noun. ✓
Watch out. You can leave out who, which or that when it is the object of the clause: the book [that] I read.
Method. Find the noun, then the two or three words that come straight after it.
- Find the noun. The noun is the thing the clause describes.song
- Copy the words that follow. The words after the noun form the clause, even though no pronoun is written.we sang
- Write the answer. we sang
Check. we sang describes the noun. ✓
Watch out. You can leave out who, which or that when it is the object of the clause: the book [that] I read.
Method. Find the noun, then the two or three words that come straight after it.
- Find the noun. The noun is the thing the clause describes.food
- Copy the words that follow. The words after the noun form the clause, even though no pronoun is written.they cooked
- Write the answer. they cooked
Check. they cooked describes the noun. ✓
Watch out. You can leave out who, which or that when it is the object of the clause: the book [that] I read.
Method. Find the noun, then the two or three words that come straight after it.
- Find the noun. The noun is the thing the clause describes.coat
- Copy the words that follow. The words after the noun form the clause, even though no pronoun is written.she lost
- Write the answer. she lost
Check. she lost describes the noun. ✓
Watch out. You can leave out who, which or that when it is the object of the clause: the book [that] I read.
Method. Find the noun, then the two or three words that come straight after it.
- Find the noun. The noun is the thing the clause describes.game
- Copy the words that follow. The words after the noun form the clause, even though no pronoun is written.we played
- Write the answer. we played
Check. we played describes the noun. ✓
Watch out. You can leave out who, which or that when it is the object of the clause: the book [that] I read.
Method. Find the noun, then the two or three words that come straight after it.
- Find the noun. The noun is the thing the clause describes.cake
- Copy the words that follow. The words after the noun form the clause, even though no pronoun is written.my friend baked
- Write the answer. my friend baked
Check. my friend baked describes the noun. ✓
Watch out. You can leave out who, which or that when it is the object of the clause: the book [that] I read.
Method. Leave out the pronoun, because the bread is the object of made.
- Find the noun. The bread is the thing the baker made.the bread
- Leave out the pronoun. The baker made it, so the pronoun is the object.the baker made
- Write the answer. The bread the baker made is warm.
Check. the baker made describes the bread. ✓
Method. Check whether the pronoun is the subject of the clause.
- Find the subject. Who is the subject of won, so it must stay.who won
- Check the sentence. Without who, the sentence would not make sense.yes
- Write the answer. yes
Check. who is the subject of won. ✓
Method. Choose a noun that is the object of the clause.
- Choose the noun. The soup is the thing that was cooked.The soup
- Add the clause. My mum cooked it, so no pronoun is needed.my mum cooked
- Write the answer. The soup my mum cooked was delicious.
Check. The sentence leaves out the pronoun correctly. ✓
Method. Find the noun, then the words after it.
- Find the noun. The song is the noun.song
- Copy the words. The clause is we sang.we sang
- Write the answer. we sang
Check. we sang describes the song. ✓
Method. Find the noun that comes before the clause.
- Find the clause. The clause she lost comes after the coat.she lost
- Find the noun. The noun before the clause is coat.coat
- Write the answer. coat
Check. The coat is described by she lost. ✓
Method. Leave out the pronoun, because the game is the object of played.
- Find the noun. The game is the thing we played.the game
- Leave out the pronoun. The clause we played describes the game.The game we played
- Write the answer. The game we played is fun.
Check. we played describes the game. ✓
Method. Decide whether the pronoun is the subject or the object of its clause.
- Look at the first phrase. In the book I read, I is the subject of read, and the book is the object.the book
- Look at the second phrase. In the boy who sat, who is the subject of sat.who sat
- Write the answer. In the book I read, the pronoun is the object, so it can be left out; in the boy who sat, it is the subject, so it must stay.
Check. The pronoun is left out only for the object. ✓
Method. Leave out the pronoun, because the film is the object of watched.
- Find the pronoun. That is the relative pronoun for the film.that
- Leave it out. The film we watched still makes sense.The film we watched was long.
- Write the answer. The film we watched was long.
Check. The film we watched was long makes sense. ✓
Method. Check which pronoun is the object of its clause.
- Check the first. In the girl who sings, who is the subject.who sings
- Check the second. In the dress that I chose, that is the object of chose, so it can be left out.the dress I chose
- Write the answer. the dress that I chose
Check. the dress that I chose can lose its pronoun. ✓