In Relative pronouns^x, Commas^x

Which is wrong in Nos. 4 and 5 because the relative pronoun refers to both inanimate things (systems, organizations) and people (people, leaders). In these sentences that is the only alternative. No comma is required in either sentence.Some people consider that a better choice if the antecedent...

'Precious' is too strong a word-- it sounds overly sycophantic.Yes, 'to which' probably refers to 'a phase' if we must select a word (the commas are strange and distracting) in #1-- but it could as well refer to 'Art'. In cannot be 'life' because we do not turn to life in moments of leisure!In...

Chrismlangan wrote: 2) I was irritated by Bill, constantly interrupting.Hi ClIt seems to me as if constantly interrupting has been added as an afterthought, which explains the comma. Another way to interpret the sentence would be to consider constantly interrupting a shortened relative...

This is a common structure. Grammarians use different terms to describe what and what follows it in the sentence. To my mind, a comma would make the sentence more comprehensible:What you think boring, your friends may find exciting.We could change the order of the clauses and get:Your friends...

Hi SOP SeekerOfPeace wrote:Would I be correct to say that relative clauses: ü modify a noun or a pronoun Correct, but they can also modify a clause: He didn't say anything, which was a surprise. ü Are either defining or non-defining Correct. In the following...

As a (BrE) footnote: 1. The Yangtze is the longest river in China, that flows eastward from Tibet to the China Sea. — this non-restrictive use of "that" may be found in older texts, but is not so common these days. It is unpopular with ESL examiners. 2. The Yangtze is the longest river in...

Teo wrote: the longest river in China, that flows eastward from Tibet to the China Sea. It is also called the Yangtze. In Standard British English, the above relative pronoun "that" should be replaced by "which". What about American English usage?Hi Teo,very good question, I've always...

In Longman Advanced American Dictionary (page 219), the definition of the Chang Jiang is as follows: the longest river in China, that flows eastward from Tibet to the China Sea. It is also called the Yangtze. In Standard British English, the above relative pronoun "that" should be replaced by...

They are telling you the wrong thing. You want the first ones: know that if ... was that if she ... told me that if there ... If there were truly a parenthetical remark after that, you could put commas around it, but it's hard to imagine how that would come up. Maybe, in spite of its...

Anonymous wrote: Pioussoul wrote: Kilimanjaro wrote: Pioussoul wrote: Anonymous wrote: His family, who had gone to Egypt last summer, decided to go to Spain this summer. A) His family, having gone to Egypt last summer, decided to go to Spain this summer. 1. I don't think we can reduce...