定语从句概述

（一）定语从句概述：
定语是修饰名词或代词的成分。

单词、不定式、分词、介词短语和从句都可以作定语。

在复合句中起定语作用的从句称为定语从句。

因为定语从句对名词或代词起形容、修饰的作用，所以又称为形容词性从句。

被定语从句修饰的词叫先行词，定语从句必须放在先行词的后面，由关系代词或关系副词引导。

（例）1. 形容词作定语
e.g. I have a very good book. 我有一本很好的书。

2. 不定式作定语
e.g. I have a book to read. 我有一本要读的书。

3. 分词作定语
e.g. I have a book written by Lu Xun. 我有一本鲁迅写的书。

4. 介词短语作定语
e.g. I have a book about Chinese history. 我有一本关于中国历史的书。

5. 从句作定语
e.g. I have a book which the teacher recommended. 我有一本老师推荐的书。

在英语中，单词作定语，一般要放在被修饰词之前；短语或从句作定语，必须放在被修饰的词之后。

定语从句可以修饰名词，代词，或整个句子。

（例）1. 修饰名词
e.g. The man who gave us a talk this morning is Professor Li.
今天上午给我们作报告的人是李教授。

2. 修饰代词
e.g. Those who want to visit the museum sign here, please.
那些想参观博物馆的人请在这签名。

3. 修饰整个句子。

e.g. She got the first place in a swimming competition, which made her mother so proud.
她在游泳比赛中获得第一名，这使她妈妈非常的骄傲。

（二）关系词的用法
A 关系代词的用法：关系代词有who, whom, whose, which, that等。

关系代词本身没有单，复数之分。

当它们在从句中作主语时，从句中谓语动词的人称和数必须与它的先行词一致。

① who: 修饰的先行词必须是人，在定语从句中作主语。

（例）1. 那些正在唱歌的人是我的同学。

Those who are singing are my classmates.
2. 任何开车的人都必须系安全带。

Anyone who drives car must wear a seat belt.
3. 你认识在北京大学学习的那个女孩吗？
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4. 警察已经逮捕了撞我弟弟汽车的那个酒后驾车司机。

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Exercise: In this exercise you have to explain what some words mean. Choose the right meaning from the box and then write a sentence with who.
(an architect) An architect is someone who designs buildings.
2.(a burglar) A burglar is someone _________________________________________________
3.(a customer) _________________________________________________________________
4.(a shoplifter) ________________________________________________________________
5.(a coward) __________________________________________________________________
6.(an atheist) __________________________________________________________________
7.(a tenant) ___________________________________________________________________
② whom: 修饰的先行词也是人，但在定语从句中作宾语。

（例）1. 你刚才遇到的那位老先生上位著名作家。

The gentleman whom you met just now is a famous writer.
2. 一位我不认识的远房亲戚从澳大利亚给我写了信。

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3. 那是警察昨天救的男孩吗？
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③ whose: 表示“……的”，既可以修饰人，也可以修饰物，在定语从句中作定语。

（例）1. 有窗户朝向大海的房间吗？Is there any room whose window faces the sea?
2. 在地图上出现了一些我不知道名字的国家。

__________________________________________________________________ Exercise: You met these people at a party:
1.I met somebody whose mother writes detective stories.
2.I met a man __________________________________________________
3.I met a woman ________________________________________________
4.I met a woman ________________________________________________
5.I met a couple _________________________________________________
6.I met somebody _______________________________________________
Exercise: Complete each sentence using who/whom/whose.
1.What’s the name of the man ________ car you borrowed?
2. A pacifist is a person ________ believes that all wars are wrong.
3.An orphan is a child ________ parents are dead.
4.This school is only for children ________ first language is not English.
5.I don’t know the name of the woman to _________ I spoke on the phone.
④which: 代替物，在从句中可以作主语，也可以作宾语。

Which也可以代替整个句子。

（例）1. 那条流过我们村子的小河对我们村民很有帮助。

The river which flows through our village is very helpful to our villagers.
2. 你去过去年修建的那个广场吗？
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3. 对不起，我忘了把你要的杂志带来了。

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4. 你看完了从图书馆借的那本书了吗？
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5. 太阳照热了地球，使得人类能够生存。

The sun heats the earth, which makes it possible for man to live.
⑤that: 既可以代替人，也可以代替物。

在从句中既可以作主语，又可以作宾语。

（例）1. 我想要得到的一切就是一顿美餐和好好的休息。

All that I want is a nice meal and a good rest.
2. 昨天下午他把刚拍摄的那张照片拿给我们看。

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3. 正在跟老师说话的那个女孩是谁？
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4. 还有什么别的事情你想告诉我的吗？
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⑥that和which的区别：在引导定语从句修饰物时，一般没有区别。

但在某些情况下二者不可以互换。

(1)只能由that引导的定语从句：
a.先行词是不定代词all, few, little, much, something, nothing, anything, none, the one等.
(例) 1. 所有能做的都被做了。

All that can be done has been done.
2. 我们愿意做些对他人有帮助的事。

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3. 没有什么我感兴趣的事。

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4. 我指的是昨天买的那个。

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b. 先行词被the only, the very, the last, the same, any, few, little, no, all, every, some
等修饰。

（例）1. 我已经读完了你给我的所有的书。

I have read all the books that you gave me.
2. 他们已经得到了他们所需要的全部的书。

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3. 他是我唯一想与之谈话的人。

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4. 它正是我一直在找的东西。

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c. 先行词是数词，或被序数词或形容词最高级修饰。

(例) 1. 他是第一个给了我一些有用建议的人。

He was the first person that gave us some useful advice.
2. 看这些花，你能看到你给我的那两朵。

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3. 这是我吃过的最昂贵的一次晚餐。

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4. 这是必须马上完成的最重要的任务。

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d. 先行词既有人又有物。

（例）1. 他们正在讨论他们还记着的一些人和事。

They are talking about some things and persons that they remembered.
2. 作者在他的书里描写的那些人物和事件都非常有意思。

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e. 在以who, which开头的疑问句中，用that以避免重复。

（例）1. 你正在读的是哪本书？Which is the book that you are reading?
2. 送那个小男孩回家的人是谁？_______________________________________
(2) 只能用which引导的定语从句：
a. 引导非限制性定语从句。

（例）我们错过了那个电视剧，这真遗憾。

We missed the TV play, which was a pity.
b.用于介词后，跟介词一起引导定语从句。

（例）这是我父亲工作的那家工厂。

This is the factory in which my father works.
Exercise: Make one sentence from two. Use who/that/which.
1. A girl was injured in the accident. She is now in the hospital.
The girl who was injured in the accident is now in th hospital.
2. A man answered the phone. He told me you were away.
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3. A waitress served us. She was very impolite and impatient.
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4. A building was destroyed in the fire. It has now been rebuilt.
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5.Some people were arrested. They have now been released.
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6. A bus goes to the airport. It runs every half hour.
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Exercise:Complete the sentences. Choose the most appropriate ending from the box and make it into an
1.Barbara works for a company that makes washing machines.
2.The book is about a girl _____________________________________________________.
3.What was the name of the horse _______________________________________________?
4.The police have caught the men _______________________________________________.
5.Alexander was the man ______________________________________________________.
6.What happened to the pictures ________________________________________________?
7. A mystery is something ______________________________________________________.
8. A dictionary is a book _______________________________________________________.
9.I don’t like people __________________________________________________________.
10.It seems that Earth is the only planet ____________________________________________.
1. Have you found the keys that/which you lost?
2. I like the dress __________________________________________________
3. The museum ______________________________ was closed when we got there.
4. What’s the name of the movie ______________________________________?
5. Some of the people ___________________________________ couldn’t come.
6. Have you finished the work ________________________________________?
Are these the keys that/which you were looking for?
2.Unfortunately, we couldn’t go to the wedding _____________________________________.
3.I enjoy my job. I like the people ________________________________________________.
4.What’s the name of that hotel _________________________________________________?
5.The party _____________________________ wasn’t very much fun.
6.I didn’t get the job __________________________________________________________.
7.Brian is a good person to know. He’s somebody ___________________________________.
8.Who was that man _________________________ in the restaurant?
Exercise: Cross out that if only which is possible.
1.Jane works for a company that/which makes shoes.
2.Brad told me about his new job, that/which he’s enjoying every much.
3.My office, that/which is on the second floor of the building, is very small.
4.The office that/which I’m using at the moment is very small.
5.She told me her address, that/which I wrote down on a piece of paper.
6.There are some words that/which are very difficult to translate.
7.The sun, that/which is one of millions of stars in the universe, probides us with heat and light.
B 关系副词的用法：关系副词有when, where, why等，在定语从句中作状语。

①when: 修饰的先行词是表示时间的词，在定语从句中作时间状语。

（例）他现在还记得他在法国学习的那些日子。

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② where: 修饰的先行词是表示地点的单词，在定语从句中作地点状语。

(例) 谁能想出一个这个习语能被使用的情景？
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我年轻时学习过的那所中学现在教授英语和日语。

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③ why:修饰先行词the reason, 在从句中作原因状语。

（例）告诉我你昨天缺席的原因。

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那不是你要离去的原因。

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C 关系代词和关系副词的区别：对于同一个先行词，有时用关系代词，有时用关系副词，判断应该用什么词的原则是：这个关系词引导定语从句时，在句子中作主语，宾语，还是状语。

作主语，宾语时用关系代词，作状语是用关系副词。

（例）1. This is the school where I studied 10 years ago.
This is the school which we set up 10 years ago.
This is the school which was set up 10 years ago.
2. I will never forget the days when I studied in Beijing.
I will never forget the days which we spent together.
D 介词+关系代词引导的定语从句：介词+关系代词也可以引导一个定语从句。

主要有以下几种形式。

①介词+关系代词which:等于一个关系副词。

在此结构中，介词的选用由which所代替的名词在构成介
词短语时与介词的固定搭配所决定。

如：
in the year = in which = when on the day = on which = when
at the factory = at which = where in the house = in which = where
（例）1. 我们不知道会议开始的时间。

W e don’t know the time when/at which the meeting will begin.
2. 我仍然记得我初来学校的那一天。

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3. 你记得去年我遇见你的那个地方吗？
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4. 这是莎士比亚出生的那座房子。

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②which所修饰的先行词作带有介词的动词词组的宾语。

在这一结构中，介词的选用取决于句子中的动词词组或固定搭配中所需要的介词。

（例）1. This is a subject. We might argue about this subject for a long time.
=This is the subject which we might argue about for a long time.
=This is the subject about which we might argue for a long time.
2. 我们通常遇见的能源是热能，声能，电能和化学能。

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3. 他总是讲一些让别人笑话的故事。

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4. 他通过了那个非常难的考试，为此他非常骄傲。

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5. 我要走着去的那家图书馆不远。

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③介词+关系代词whom：当关系代词替代的是人而不是物，并在定语从句中作介词宾语时，要用whom。

在这一结构中，介词的选用取决于句子中相关结构所需要的介词搭配。

(例) 1. They are girls with whom my daughter goes to school.
2. 那个是你们把论文交给他的老师吗？_____________________________________
3. 这就是我们找了好长时间的那个男孩。

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④名词/代词+介词+关系代词：
（例）1. I bought a dozen of eggs, half of which were broken when I got home.
2. 那个教授昨天开了一堂讲座，我不能完全理解这个讲座的意思。

_____________________________________________________________________
3. 他有很多书，其中的四分之一是英文。

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Exercise: Make two sentences from one.
1. Mr. Carter is very interested in our plan. (I spoke to him on the phone last night.)
Mr. Carter, to whom I spoke on the phone last night, is very interested in our plan.
2. This is a picture of our friends. (We went on vacation with these friends.)
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3. The wedding took place last Friday. (Only members of the family were invited to it.)
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4. Sue finally arrived. (We had been waiting for her.)
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5. My room has a very large window. (You can see the whole lake.)
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Exercise: Write sentences with all of/ most of, etc.+ whom/which.
1.Mary has three brothers. (All of her brothers are married.)
Mary has three brothers, all of whom are married.
2.We were given a lot of information. (Most of the information was useless.)
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3.There were a lot of people at the party. (I had met only a few of these people before.)
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4.I sent her two letters. (She has received neither of these letters.)
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5.Ten people applied for the job. (None of these people were suitable.)
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6.Kate has two cars. (She hardly ever uses one of them.)
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7.Mike won 50,000 dollars. (He gave half of this to his parents.)
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8.Julia has two sisters. (Both of her sisters are teachers.)
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（三）定语从句的种类：
A 限制性定语从句：与先行词紧密相连，不可分割。

如果去掉从句，主句的意思就不完整或是不合逻辑。

主句和从句之间没有逗号分开。

（例）1. 那个正在大会上发言的女士是一个著名的律师。

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2. 这是我们去年工作过的那个工厂。

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B 非限制性定语从句：只是对主句加以补充说明，或进一步描述。

没有这种定语从句，主句的意思依然完
整。

非限制性定语从句不能用that引导。

从句和主句要用逗号分开。

（例）1. 汤姆是我的一个老朋友，他从伦敦来看我。

Tom, who was one of my old friends, came to see me from London.
2.. 这是我们的新图书室，在这我们能读到一些外国杂志。

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3. 他总是来帮助我们，真是太感谢他了。

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Exercise: Use the sentence in parentheses to make a relative clause.
1. Ann is very friendly. (She lives next door.)
Ann, who lives next door, is very friendly.
2. We stayed at the Grand Hotel. (Ann recommended it for us.)
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3. We went to Sandra's party. (We enjoyed it very much.)
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4. I went to see the doctor. (He told me to rest for a few days.)
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5. John is one of my closest friends. (I have known him for a very long time.)
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6. Sheila is away from home a lot. (Her job involves a lot of traveling.)
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7. The new stadium will be opened next month. (It can hold 90,000 people.)
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8. Alaska is the largest state in the United States. (My brother lives there.)
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Exercise: Read the information and complete the sentences.
1. There's a woman living next door. She's a doctor.
The woman who lives next door is a doctor.
2. I have a brother named Jim. He lives in Houston. He is a doctor.
My brother Jim, who lives in Houston, is a doctor.
3. There was a strike at the car factory. It lasted ten days. It is now over.
The strike at the car factory __________________________
4. I was looking for a book this morning. I've found it now.
I've found ___________________________________
5. London was once the largest city in the world, but now the population is now decreasing.
The population of London ____________________
6. A job was advertised. A lot of people applied for it. Few of them had the necessary qualifications.
Few of ________________________________________
7. Amanda has a son. She showed me a picture of him. He is a police officer.
Amanda showed me __________________________________
1. Lauren couldn't come to the party, __________________________
2. Jill doesn't _____________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________
4. ______________________________________________________
5. ______________________________________________________
6. ______________________________________________________
7. ______________________________________________________
（四）限制性定语从句中关系词的省略：
（1）作动词宾语或介词宾语的关系代词可省略。

（这时介词不可在关系代词前）
（例）Have you found the book you want?
This is the man we have talked about.
(在英语会话中，这时常省去whom,或用who,that代替。

在以介词结尾的从句中几乎不能用whom.)
(2) 关系副词或其对等结构“介词+which”有时可以省略。

（例）This is the reason I did it.
Exercise: 下列句中关系代词是否可以省略？
1. The woman who lives next door is a doctor.
2. Have you found the keys that you lost?
3. The people who we met at the party were very friendly.
4. The people who work in the office are very friendly.
5. The people who I talked to were very friendly.
6. What have you done with the money that I gave you?
7. What happened to the money that was on the table? Did you take it?
8. It was an awful movie. It was the worst movie that I've ever seen.
9. It was an awful experience. It was the worst thing that has ever happened to me.
Homework: Multiple choice.
1. The weather turned out to be very good, _____ was more than we could expect.
A. what
B. which
C. that
D. it
2. I shall never forget those years ______ I lived in the country with the farmers, ______ has a great effect on my life.
A. that; which
B. when; which
C. which; that
D. when; who
3. In the office I never seem to have time until after 5:30 p.m., ______ many people have got home.
A. whose time
B. that
C. on which
D. by which
4. After living in Paris for fifty years he returned to the small town ______ he grew up as a child.
A. which
B. that
C. where
D. when
5. I don't like ______ you speak to her.
A. the way
B. the way in that
C. the way which
D. the way of which
6. Carol said the work would be done by October, ______ personally I doubt very much.
A. it
B. that
C. when
D. which
7. The result of the experiment was very good, _____ we hadn't expect.
A. when
B. that
C. which
D. what
8. The film brought the hours back to me ______ I was taken good care of in that far-away village.
A. until
B. that
C. when
D. what
9. --Did you remember to give Mary the money you owed her?
--Yes. I gave it to her _____ I saw her.
A. while
B. the moment
C. suddenly
D. once
10. The lady _____ runs this hotel is Miss Smith.
A. whom
B. who
C. which
D. whose
11. This is the new teacher ______ you have not met before.
A. whom
B. who
C. which
D. why
12. The woman ______ son you know is an expert in city planning.
A. whom
B. who
C. whose
D. what
13. This is the book _______ I have been looking for.
A. who
B. which
C. whose
D. what
14. Hong Kong is the most beautiful city _____ I have ever visited.
A. who
B. which
C. that
D. whose
15. Mary is one of the brightest students who ____ from our school.
A. is graduated
B. has graduated
C. have graduated
D. are graduated
16. I enjoyed the movie very much, I wish I had read the book ______ it was made.
A. by which
B. from which
C. with which
D. for which
17. People should not forget the sweat and labor of those _____ helped build today's urban prosperity with their
hands.
A. whom
B. who
C. whose
D. which
18. He gave the boy a pony for his birthday, _____ pleased him a lot.
A. who
B. what
C. that
D. which
19. I'll never forget my hometown, ______ I spent my childhood.
A. when
B. how
C. which
D. where
20. Mountain Everest, the peak ______ is hardly seen, is the highest mountain in the world.
A. which
B. of which
C. of whose
D. that
21. The radio set ______ has gone out of order.
A. I bought for her
B. what I bought for her
C. I bought it for her
D. what I bought it for her
22. All _____ is a continuous supply of fuel oil.
A. which is needed
B. what is needed
C. that is needed
D. for their needs
23. After graduation, the students want to be sent to the western regions ______.
A. where the talents needed
B. where the talents are most needed
C. where are the talents needed
D. where the talents need
24. I shall always remember the day ______ I was admitted to the Party.
A. on which
B. in which
C. which
D. for which
25. I know the reason ______ he left his country.
A. why
B. that
C. who
D. when。