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Relative clauses en inglés: who, which, that y más

Relative clauses en inglés: who, which, that y más

Las relative clauses añaden información sobre un sustantivo. En "I met a student who speaks three languages.", "who speaks three languages" describe a student. Repasa la guía de estructura de oraciones.

Qué es una relative clause

Es una cláusula dependiente que modifica un sustantivo. "who" se usa con personas; "which", con cosas; "whose", para posesión; "where", para lugares; y "when", para momentos. En defining clauses, "that" puede referirse a personas o cosas.

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Defining y non-defining clauses

Una defining relative clause aporta información esencial y no lleva comas: "The student who sits next to me is from Brazil." Una non-defining clause añade información y lleva comas: "CWC, which is located in Los Angeles, welcomes English learners." No admite "that".

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Cuándo omitir el pronombre

Puede omitirse si es objeto de una defining clause: "The book I bought is useful." No si es sujeto: "The student who called me is my classmate." Consulta la guía de pronombres.

Errores y práctica

Evita el doble pronombre "The book that I bought it is useful." La forma correcta es "The book that I bought is useful.". Combinar frases e identificar el antecedente mejora tus habilidades de escritura.

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Uso en comunicación real

Describe personas, lugares y experiencias con "who", "where" y "that". En CWC, Grammar se integra con Speaking y Reading & Writing. Connection Questions y las presentaciones semanales de ESS permiten usar estas estructuras. Repasa las reglas gramaticales.

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Cómo usar who, whom, which y that

Usa "who" cuando una persona sea sujeto. "whom" es la forma formal para un objeto, aunque en conversación se prefiere "who". "which" se refiere a cosas o animales y "that" a personas o cosas en defining clauses.

  • "She is the student who asked the question."
  • "The teacher who explained the rule was clear."
  • "The professor whom I contacted replied quickly."
  • "The professor who I contacted replied quickly."
  • "The person to whom I spoke was helpful."
  • "The person who I spoke to was helpful."
  • "This is the book which helped me understand grammar."
  • "The exercise, which took 20 minutes, was useful."
  • "The class that starts at 9:00 a.m. is full."
  • "The student that won the award gave a speech."

Non-defining relative clauses

Añaden información sobre un sustantivo ya identificado, se separan con comas y no admiten "that". Si se elimina la cláusula, la oración principal sigue completa.

  • "CWC, which is located in Los Angeles, welcomes English learners from many backgrounds."
  • "My classmate Ana, who speaks Spanish, helped me with the activity."
  • "The museum, which we visited on Friday, had a new exhibition."
  • "My notebook, that is blue, is on the desk."
  • "My notebook, which is blue, is on the desk."

Uso de whose, where y when

"whose" expresa posesión, "where" se refiere a lugares y "when" a momentos. En registros formales pueden aparecer alternativas como "in which" y "on which".

  • "I met a student whose pronunciation improved quickly."
  • "She is the writer whose essay won the contest."
  • "We visited a school whose programs serve international learners."
  • "in/at that place."
  • "This is the café where we studied."
  • "Los Angeles is a city where people use many languages."
  • "the café where we studied at."
  • "I remember the day when I gave my first presentation."
  • "Summer is a season when many students travel."
  • "This is the café in which we studied."
  • "I remember the day on which we met."

Cuantificadores e ideas completas

Estructuras como "many of whom" y "two of which" describen una parte de un grupo. En una non-defining clause, "which" también puede referirse a toda la idea anterior.

  • "none of which."
  • "The class has 15 students, many of whom speak more than one language."
  • "We completed five activities, two of which involved speaking."
  • "She completed her presentation early, which reduced her stress."

Reduced relative clauses

Una cláusula activa puede reducirse a una frase en -ing y una pasiva a un participio pasado. Conserva la cláusula completa si el significado o el sustantivo modificado no quedan claros.

  • "Students who attend the workshop should arrive early."
  • "Students attending the workshop should arrive early."
  • "The assignments that were submitted yesterday have been graded."
  • "The assignments submitted yesterday have been graded."
  • "The students who are in Room 4 are taking a test."
  • "The students in Room 4 are taking a test."

Cómo practicar relative clauses

Combina dos oraciones breves y dibuja una flecha desde la cláusula hasta su antecedente. Decide si la información es esencial o adicional y comprueba las comas.

  • "I met a classmate. The classmate lives near campus."
  • "I met a classmate who lives near campus."

Preguntas frecuentes

¿Puede "that" referirse a personas?

Sí, en defining clauses, aunque "who" suele resultar más natural. No se usa en non-defining clauses.

Las relative clauses conectan información con precisión. Para aplicar la gramática en conversaciones reales en CWC, contacta con Columbia West College.