Relative clauses with whose, where and prepositions
Use whose for possession, where and when for places and times, and put a preposition either at the end (informal) or before which/whom (formal).
How it works
- whose + noun = possession, for people and things: The woman whose bag was stolen called the police.
- where = in/at which, after a place: This is the café where we first met.
- when = at/on which, after a time: I remember the day when I started school.
- Informal: preposition at the end: the man I was talking to. Formal: preposition + whom/which: the man to whom I was talking.
- After a preposition, use whom or which, never who or that: the company for which she works.
- Quantifier + of whom/which: three sisters, all of whom live abroad.
- Don't repeat the preposition after where: the town where I live (not where I live in).
Examples
I have a friend whose father owns a phở restaurant.
This is the street where I grew up.
Do you remember the summer when we went to Phú Quốc?
The company for which she works is based in Singapore.
That's the teacher I told you about.
He has three sisters, all of whom live abroad.
Common mistakes
Wrong: That's the hotel
whichwe stayed last year.Right: That's the hotel where we stayed last year.
Wrong: I met a man
who'scar had broken down.Right: I met a man whose car had broken down.
Wrong: The village where I was born
inis very small.Right: The village where I was born is very small.
Wrong: The person to
whoI spoke was very helpful.Right: The person to whom I spoke was very helpful.
Practice
1 of 16Fill the gap.
Level: EGP Clauses (relative): whose and where are first used at B1; preposition + which/whom (the city in which I was born) and quantifier + of which/whom are controlled at B2 and grow at C1. Written for Gloss.