What is a relative clause? A guide for parents

What it is

Clause

A group of words with a verb in it. "The boy lives near school" is a clause. Children learn this term in Year 3.

Relative clause

A clause that adds information about a noun, and can't stand on its own as a sentence. In "That's the boy who lives near school", the relative clause is who lives near school. It tells you which boy.

Relative pronoun

The word that starts a relative clause and points back to the noun: who, which, where, when, whose or that. In the example above, who points back to the boy.

A relative clause is a kind of subordinate clause: a clause that depends on the rest of the sentence. On its own, who lives near school doesn't make sense. It needs the noun it's describing.

• who: The girl who won the race is my cousin.
• which: We found a shell which was shaped like a star.
• where: This is the park where we had the picnic.
• when: I remember the day when it snowed.
• whose: That's the man whose dog barks all night.
• that: The prize that I won was a book.

Sometimes the relative pronoun is left out altogether. "The prize that I won was a book" can also be written "The prize I won was a book". It's still a relative clause, just with the pronoun dropped. The curriculum calls this an omitted relative pronoun.

A relative clause can also comment on a whole idea rather than one noun. In "Tom broke the game, which annoyed Ali", which points back to everything before it: Tom breaking the game.

How it's taught at school

Relative clauses are Year 5 grammar in the national curriculum for England. The grammar appendix lists relative clauses beginning with who, which, where, when, whose, that, or an omitted relative pronoun, and Year 5 is when children are expected to learn the terms relative clause and relative pronoun.

• Year 3: the terms clause and subordinate clause.
• Year 4: expanded noun phrases, such as the strict maths teacher with curly hair. Relative clauses are another way to add detail to a noun.
• Year 5: relative clauses and relative pronouns, plus brackets, dashes and commas to add extra information (called parenthesis).
• Year 6: children keep using relative clauses in their writing, and they can come up in the KS2 grammar test.

Relative clauses help children pack more into a sentence. Instead of "I have a dog. My dog loves chasing balls.", your child can write "I have a dog that loves chasing balls."

When a relative clause adds extra information in the middle of a sentence, it's often marked off with a pair of commas, brackets or dashes: "The castle, which was built on a hill, could be seen for miles." Take the relative clause out and the sentence still works.

Common mistakes (and how to help)

Writing a relative clause as a sentence on its own

"Which was really fun." isn't a full sentence. Read it aloud together and ask "What was really fun?" Then join it back on to the sentence it belongs to with a comma: "We went to the beach, which was really fun."

Using which for a person

Who is used for people (the boy who lives near school), and which is used for animals and things. If your child writes "the girl which", ask them whether the noun is a person or a thing.

Forgetting the second comma

When a relative clause sits in the middle of a sentence, it needs a comma at both ends, like a pair of hands holding it. Read the sentence aloud and pause at each end of the extra information.

Not spotting a relative clause when the pronoun is left out

In "The cake you baked was delicious", the relative clause is you baked. Ask your child to try putting that back in: "The cake that you baked". If it fits, there's a relative clause.

Three quick activities at home

Questions parents ask

Sources

1. Department for Education: English Appendix 2: Vocabulary, grammar and punctuation
2. Department for Education: English glossary (national curriculum)
3. Standards and Testing Agency: Key stage 2: English grammar, punctuation and spelling test framework
4. BBC Bitesize: What are relative clauses?
5. Cambridge Dictionary: Relative pronouns (English Grammar Today)