Year 6 English: Relative clauses with who, which and that
Part of the Year 6 English relative clauses and expanded noun phrases chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
Relative clauses with who, which and that
A relative clause adds information about a noun. It begins with a relative pronoun. Use who for a person, and which or that for a thing.
The relative clause comes straight after the noun it describes, and it helps the reader to know which person or thing is meant.
Who, which and that
| Relative pronoun | Used for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| who | a person | The teacher who helps everyone is kind. |
| that | a person or a thing | The bike that was parked outside is red. |
| which | a thing | The painting which hangs in the hall is old. |
Key ideas
- A relative clause adds information about a noun.
- Use who for people, and which or that for things.
- The relative clause comes straight after the noun it describes.
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. She refers to the teacher, a person.The teacher
- Use who for a person. Who is the relative pronoun for a person.who helps everyone
- Join the sentences. The clause follows the noun.The teacher who helps everyone is kind.
- Write the answer. The teacher who helps everyone is kind.
Check. who describes the teacher, a person. ✓
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. It refers to the soup, a thing.The soup
- Use that for a thing. That is the relative pronoun for a thing.that Mum made
- Join the sentences. The clause follows the noun, and the main verb stays.The soup that Mum made was too hot.
- Write the answer. The soup that Mum made was too hot.
Check. that describes the soup, a thing. ✓
Method. The girl is a person, so the pronoun is who.
- Find the noun. Girl is a person.girl
- Choose the pronoun. For a person, use who.who
- Check the sentence. The girl who won the race is my cousin.who
- Write the answer. who
Check. who is used for a person. ✓
Watch out
Watch out: do not use which or that for a person. Use who for a person, even if the person is a child or a friend.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Ask your child to describe a family member using a relative clause, starting with who. Then ask them to describe a favourite object with which or that.
Exercise 5A Practice: who, which and that
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. The boy is my cousin. names the noun, and he lives in leeds. describes it.The boy
- Add the clause. The clause who lives in Leeds describes the noun, so it follows the noun.who lives in Leeds
- Join the sentences. The main sentence keeps its verb, and the clause sits in the middle.The boy who lives in Leeds is my cousin.
- Write the answer. The boy who lives in Leeds is my cousin.
Check. The relative clause who lives in Leeds follows the noun. ✓
Watch out. Do not keep the pronoun he, she, it or they in the joined sentence. Replace it with the relative pronoun.
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. The bike was stolen. names the noun, and it was parked outside the school. describes it.The bike
- Add the clause. The clause that was parked outside the school describes the noun, so it follows the noun.that was parked outside the school
- Join the sentences. The main sentence keeps its verb, and the clause sits in the middle.The bike that was parked outside the school was stolen.
- Write the answer. The bike that was parked outside the school was stolen.
Check. The relative clause that was parked outside the school follows the noun. ✓
Watch out. Do not keep the pronoun he, she, it or they in the joined sentence. Replace it with the relative pronoun.
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. The teacher is kind. names the noun, and she helps everyone. describes it.The teacher
- Add the clause. The clause who helps everyone describes the noun, so it follows the noun.who helps everyone
- Join the sentences. The main sentence keeps its verb, and the clause sits in the middle.The teacher who helps everyone is kind.
- Write the answer. The teacher who helps everyone is kind.
Check. The relative clause who helps everyone follows the noun. ✓
Watch out. Do not keep the pronoun he, she, it or they in the joined sentence. Replace it with the relative pronoun.
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. The mountain is high. names the noun, and snow covers its top. describes it.The mountain
- Add the clause. The clause that has snow on its top describes the noun, so it follows the noun.that has snow on its top
- Join the sentences. The main sentence keeps its verb, and the clause sits in the middle.The mountain that has snow on its top is high.
- Write the answer. The mountain that has snow on its top is high.
Check. The relative clause that has snow on its top follows the noun. ✓
Watch out. Do not keep the pronoun he, she, it or they in the joined sentence. Replace it with the relative pronoun.
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. A dog barked. names the noun, and it belonged to the farmer. describes it.A dog barked.
- Add the clause. The clause that belonged to the farmer describes the noun, so it follows the noun.that belonged to the farmer
- Join the sentences. The main sentence keeps its verb, and the clause sits in the middle.A dog that belonged to the farmer barked.
- Write the answer. A dog that belonged to the farmer barked.
Check. The relative clause that belonged to the farmer follows the noun. ✓
Watch out. Do not keep the pronoun he, she, it or they in the joined sentence. Replace it with the relative pronoun.
Method. Test each choice against the sentence or the text.
- Read what the question asks for. Decide what the sentence or the text needs.
- Test the choice. The man is a person, so the relative pronoun is who.who fits
- Reject the other choices. Which is used for things, not for a person such as the man.which do not fit
- Write the answer. who
Check. The choice fits the sentence or the text. ✓
Method. Test each choice against the sentence or the text.
- Read what the question asks for. Decide what the sentence or the text needs.
- Test the choice. The chair is a thing, so the relative pronoun is that.that fits
- Reject the other choices. Who is used for people, not for a chair.who do not fit
- Write the answer. that
Check. The choice fits the sentence or the text. ✓
Method. Find the words that begin with the relative pronoun, and copy them.
- Find the relative pronoun. Who is the relative pronoun, and it begins the clause that describes the girl.who
- Copy the clause. The clause is the words from who to the end of the clause.who sings in the choir
- Write the answer. who sings in the choir
Check. who sings in the choir is the relative clause. ✓
Watch out. A relative clause tells you which person, thing, place or time is meant.
Method. Find the words that begin with the relative pronoun, and copy them.
- Find the relative pronoun. That is the relative pronoun, and it describes the car.that
- Copy the clause. The clause is the words from that to the end of the clause.that was parked by the gate
- Write the answer. that was parked by the gate
Check. that was parked by the gate is the relative clause. ✓
Watch out. A relative clause tells you which person, thing, place or time is meant.
Method. Find the noun that the other words describe.
- Find the phrase. The phrase is the child who lost the ball.the child who lost the ball
- Find the main noun. The child is the person that the clause describes.child
- Write the answer. child
Check. child is the main noun. ✓
Watch out. The main noun is the word that the other words are about. Adjectives and clauses describe it.
Method. Choose a person, then add a clause that tells the reader more about them.
- Choose the person. The gardener is a person.The gardener
- Add the clause. Who looks after the park gives more about the gardener.who looks after the park
- Write the answer. The gardener who looks after the park planted the new trees.
Check. The sentence uses who for a person. ✓
Method. Choose a thing, then add a clause that tells the reader more about it.
- Choose the thing. The painting is a thing.The painting
- Add the clause. Which hangs in the hall gives more about the painting.which hangs in the hall
- Write the answer. The painting which hangs in the hall was painted in 1920.
Check. The sentence uses which for a thing. ✓
Method. Think about whether the noun is a person or a thing.
- Find the noun. The teacher is a person.a person
- Choose the pronoun. Who is used for people; which is used for things.who
- Write the answer. The teacher is a person, and who is used for people, while which is used for things
Check. who is used for a person. ✓
Method. Check whether the noun is a person or a thing.
- Find the noun. Shop is a thing, not a person.shop
- Check the pronoun. Which is used for things, so the sentence is correct.which
- Write the answer. Yes, because shop is a thing, and which is used for things.
Check. which is used for things, so the sentence is correct. ✓
Method. Find the noun that the second sentence describes, then add the clause after it.
- Find the noun. The painting is the noun, and the second sentence describes its frame.The painting
- Add the clause. The clause whose frame is gold describes the noun, so it follows the noun.whose frame is gold
- Join the sentences. The main sentence keeps its verb, and the clause sits in the middle.The painting whose frame is gold is old.
- Write the answer. The painting whose frame is gold is old.
Check. The relative clause whose frame is gold follows the noun. ✓
Watch out. Do not keep the pronoun he, she, it or they in the joined sentence. Replace it with the relative pronoun.
Method. Find the relative pronoun, and the words that follow it.
- Find the pronoun. That is the relative pronoun.that
- Copy the clause. The clause runs from that to the end of the describing words.that I bought
- Write the answer. that I bought
Check. that I bought describes the bike. ✓