UNIT 92. Relative Clauses 3: whose/whom/where

A

Whose

We use whose in relative clauses instead of his/her/their:
-—————————–
we saw some people – “their” car had broken down

-> We saw some people “whose” car had broken down.
-—————————–

We use whose mostly for people:
– A window is a woman whose husband is dead. (her husband is dead)
– What’s the name of the man whose car you borrowed? (you borrowed his car)
– I met someone whose brother I went to school with.
(I went to school with his/her brother)

Compare who and whose:
– I met a man who knows you. (he knows you)
– I met a man whose sister knows you. (his sister knows you)

B

Whom

Whom is possible instead of who when it is the object of the verb in the relative clause
(like the sentences in Unit 91B):
– The woman whom I wanted to see was away on vacation. (I wanted to see her)

You can also use whom with a preposition (to whom / from whom / with whom, etc.):
– The people with whom I work are very nice. (I work with them)

But we do not often use whom is spoken English. We usually prefer who or that, or nothing.
So we usually say:
– The woman I wanted to see … or The woman who/that I wanted to see …
– The people I work with … or The people who/that I work with …

C

Where

You can use where in a relative clause to talk about a place:
-—————————–
the restaurant – we had dinner “there” – it was near the airport

-> The restaurant “where” we had dinner was near the airport.

“there” – “where”
-—————————–
– I recently went back to the town where I grew up.
(or … the town I grew up in or … the town that I gew up in)
– I would like to live in a place where is plenty of sunshine.

D

We say:

the day / the year / the time, etc.
– something happens or
– that something happens

-—————————–

• Do you remember the day (that) we went to the zoo?
• The last time (that) I saw her, she looked fine.
• I haven’t seen them since the year (that) they got married.

E

We say:

the reason { (something happen) or (they/why something happens) }

• The reason I’m calling you is to ask your advice.
  (or The reason that I’m calling / The reason why I’m calling)