Study the rules, look at the examples, then do the exercises.
A relative clause gives more information about a noun (a person, thing or place). Instead of writing two short sentences, we join them with a relative pronoun: who, which, that, whose, where or when. This is one of the most useful skills at B1, because it makes your speaking and writing sound smooth and grown-up.
Look at how two sentences become one:
The pronoun you choose depends on the kind of noun you are describing. Learn this table well — it answers most exam questions.
| Pronoun | Use it for... | Example |
|---|---|---|
| who | people | The boy who lives next door is my best friend. |
| which | things / animals | This is the toy which makes funny sounds. |
| that | people or things (informal) | The story that won the prize is here. |
| whose | possession (belonging) | She's the girl whose drawings are famous. |
| where | places | That's the park where I learned to ride my bike. |
| when | times | I'll never forget the day when we met. |
A defining relative clause tells you which person or thing we mean. Without it, the sentence does not make full sense. We do NOT use commas.
A non-defining relative clause adds extra information that we could remove. The sentence still makes sense without it. We put it between commas, and we do NOT use that.
The two commas are not decoration — they can change what the sentence means. Compare:
| Sentence | Meaning |
|---|---|
| My sister who lives in Berlin is very tall. | I have more than one sister; I mean the Berlin one. (defining, no commas) |
| My sister, who lives in Berlin, is very tall. | I have only one sister; "in Berlin" is just extra news. (non-defining, commas) |
In a defining clause, if the relative pronoun is the object of the verb, we can leave it out. This is very common in natural English.
These are the errors B1 students make most often with relative clauses. Check your own writing against this list.
| Wrong ✗ | Right ✓ | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| My grandma, that tells great stories, is kind. | My grandma, who tells great stories, is kind. | non-defining clause → never use "that". |
| My bike which is old still works. | My bike, which is old, still works. | extra information → needs two commas. |
| She's the girl who's dog won. | She's the girl whose dog won. | "whose" = possession; "who's" = who is. |
| This is the house where I grew up in it. | This is the house where I grew up. | "where" already means "in that place"; no extra "in it". |
| The friend which called you is here. | The friend who called you is here. | use "who" (or "that") for people, not "which". |
Two friends look at old photos and describe the people and places in them. Read it twice and notice each relative clause — which are defining (no commas) and which are non-defining (commas)?
Choose the correct answer. — 10 questions, each one is marked instantly. Questions get harder as you go.
Learn the words, then use them to describe the people and places in your life.
Write 8 sentences describing people, places and things in your life. Use at least 8 of the words above.
Sentence starters (you can begin with these):
Değerlendirme öğretmenin tarafından yapılacak. (Your teacher will review your task.)
Read the text, then answer the questions.
Good readers prepare before they start. Before you read, think about these three questions (you do not need to write the answers):
Words to spot (from the Speaking section): relative · landmark · reliable · talented · remote · spacious · describe · belong
Deniz is a boy who loves old things. Every summer he visits a small, remote village where his grandmother lives. At the end of her quiet street there is an old stone house that has belonged to his family for a hundred years. It is the house where his father grew up, and Deniz had always wanted to see inside it.
When his father was young, the house was full of life. Grandmother loves to describe the summers when all the relatives came to stay, and the neighbour whose garden was full of roses. In those days the house, which was painted a soft yellow, was a little landmark that everyone in the village knew. Deniz loved the old photos where the whole family looked so happy.
But slowly things changed. The family who once filled the rooms moved to the city, and the house that they left behind grew old and grey. The wooden door which led to the garden broke, and birds built nests under the roof. Rain came in whenever there was a storm. It made Deniz sad to stand in the place where his father had been so happy.
One morning Deniz told his grandfather, who was very good with tools, that he wanted to save the old house. His grandfather smiled and said, "This is the home where our family began. Let's bring it back to life." That was the moment when everything started. The house looked almost hopeless. However, Deniz had a clear plan.
The work was not easy, and there were days when Deniz wanted to give up. His friends, who were kind and reliable, came every weekend because they loved the old house too. The oldest boy, whose father could fix almost anything, showed them how to mix the plaster that the old walls needed. They also found a box that was full of tools, and a tin of yellow paint which still worked.
Little by little, the house began to change. They mended the door that was broken, cleaned the big, spacious room upstairs, and painted the walls, which had once been grey, a warm and cheerful yellow. A girl who was very talented at drawing painted flowers around the window.
There were hard days too. One night a storm broke a shutter that they had only just fixed. Another time it rained for a whole week, so nobody could work. On the evening when Deniz felt most tired, his grandmother brought them a plate of warm cookies and said, "This is the street where your family lived. Please don't stop." Those words, which Deniz never forgot, gave him the courage to carry on.
Today the old house is a place where all the children of the family meet. There is a bright room where they read and draw, and a garden where they play until the sun goes down. Deniz still remembers the day when he first opened the mended door. "This is the house where my father grew up," he says, "and now it belongs to all of us."
Choose the correct answer.
Are these sentences true or false, according to the text?
Complete each sentence with ONE relative pronoun from the text (who, which, that, whose, where, when).
Write your answer in your own words. These questions are not marked automatically.
1. Why did Deniz decide to save the old family house?
2. Who helped Deniz, and how did they help him?
3. What do you think Deniz means when he says the house "belongs to all of us"?
Find these connectors in the text — each one appears at least once: and, but, so, because, however, when, where, also. (You will use these same connectors in the Writing section.) Note them down, then check.
Todd and Darcy discuss whether some common English sayings are really true.
You will hear two friends, Todd and Darcy, talking about famous English sayings such as "It's not what you know, but who you know". You will listen TWICE. First listen: answer questions 1-5. Second listen: answer questions 6-10. (Kaydı İKİ kez dinleyeceksin: ilk dinlemede 1-5, ikinci dinlemede 6-10.)
Write and submit your description; your teacher will review it.
A good description does two things: it adds detail with relative clauses, and it links ideas with connectors. At A2 you used and, but, so, because. At B1 you add also, when, while, although and however, and you use relative clauses to pack more information into each sentence.
| Connector | Use it to... | Example |
|---|---|---|
| and | add information | She's a friend who is kind and always honest. |
| but | show a small contrast | My room, which is small, is cosy, but it has no window. |
| so | show a result | He's reliable, so he's the friend who I always ask for help. |
| because | give a reason | I love the park because it's a place where I can play. |
| also | add an extra point | She's talented. She's also a friend whose drawings inspire me. |
| when | say at what past time | When I was little, the village where we lived was quiet. |
| while | two things at the same time | While I was there, I met a boy who became my best friend. |
| although | show a strong contrast | Although the village is remote, it's a place that I love. |
| however | contrast between two sentences | The house was old. However, it was the home where I grew up. |
See the difference — the same facts, written two ways:
| Separate sentences ✗ | Connected, fluent writing ✓ |
|---|---|
| I have a friend. Her name is Aylin. She is very funny. She lives in Izmir. Her house is lovely. We spend summers there. | I have a friend called Aylin, who is very funny and lives in Izmir. Her house, which is lovely, is the place where we spend every summer. |
A description paragraph has three parts. The skeleton stays the same every time — you change the content, not the structure:
| Part | What to write | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Opening | Introduce the person or place with a defining relative clause | There is a place that means a lot to me. |
| 2. Body | Add details with more relative clauses. Use non-defining clauses (commas) for extra facts, and link with connectors. | The house, which is over a hundred years old, is where my grandmother lived. She was a person whose stories I loved. |
| 3. Closing | A final comment about why it matters now | It is still the place where I feel most at home. |
Describe a person, place or thing that is important to you. Use relative clauses to add detail.
Değerlendirme öğretmenin tarafından yapılacak. (Your teacher will evaluate your writing.)
Mixed questions from the whole unit, then check what you can do.
14 questions: grammar + vocabulary + reading + listening. Each question is marked instantly.
Tick what you can do now. Honest answers help your teacher.
İşaretlemediğin madde varsa ilgili bölüme dönüp tekrar çalış — soldaki menüden her bölüme geri dönebilirsin.
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