Subordination with Adjective Clauses

Coordination is a useful way of connecting ideas that are roughly equal in importance. But often we need to show that one idea in a sentence is more important than another. On these occasions we use subordination to indicate that one part of a sentence is secondary (or subordinate) to another part. One common form of subordination is the adjective clause--a word group that modifies a noun.

Consider how the following sentences might be combined:

My father is a superstitious man.
He always sets his unicorn traps at night.

One option is to coordinate the two sentences:

My father is a superstitious man, and he always sets his unicorn traps at night.

When the sentences are coordinated in this way, each main clause is given equal emphasis.

What if we want to place greater emphasis on one statement than on another? We then have the option of reducing the less important statement to an adjective clause. For example, to emphasize that father sets his unicorn traps at night, we can turn the first main clause into an adjective clause:

My father, who is a superstitious man, always sets his unicorn traps at night.

As shown here, the adjective clause does the job of an adjective and follows the noun that it modifies--father. Like a main clause, an adjective clause contains a subject (in this case, who) and a verb (is). But unlike a main clause an adjective clause can't stand alone: it has to follow a noun in a main clause. For this reason, an adjective clause is considered to be subordinate to the main clause.

Identifying Adjective Clauses

The most common adjective clauses begin with one of these relative pronouns: who, which, and that. All three pronouns refer to a noun, but who refers only to people and which refers only to things. That may refer to either people or things.

The following sentences show how these pronouns are used to begin adjective clauses:

Mr. Clean, who hates rock music, smashed my electric guitar.
Mr. Clean smashed my electric guitar, which had been a gift from Vera.
Mr. Clean smashed the electric guitar that Vera had given me.

In the first sentence, the relative pronoun who refers to Mr. Clean, the subject of the main clause. In the second and third sentences, the relative pronouns which and that refer to guitar, the object of the main clause.

PRACTICE: Identifying Adjective Clauses
Only some of the sentences below contain adjective clauses. See if you can pick out the adjective clauses, and then compare your responses with the answers at the end of the exercise.

1. I bought a car from Merdine, and it turned out to be a lemon.
2. The car that I bought from Merdine turned out to be a lemon.
3. Pandora, who had recently celebrated a birthday, opened the box of gifts.
4. Lila, who has been the fire warden for 30 years, lives in a trailer with some scrappy dogs and cats.
5. Lila, who lives in a trailer with some scrappy dogs and cats, has been the fire warden for 30 years.
6. People who smoke cigarettes should be considerate of nonsmokers.
7. Jacob, who smokes cigarettes, is considerate of nonsmokers.
8. Mr. Mann has small, dark eyes, which peer inquisitively from behind metal-rimmed glasses.
9. My wedding ring is worth at least ten dollars, and now I have lost it.
10. I have lost my wedding ring, which is worth at least ten dollars.

Answers
2. that I bought from Merdine
3. who had recently celebrated a birthday
4. who has been the town fire warden for nearly 30 years
5. who lives in a trailer with some scrappy dogs and cats
6. who smoke cigarettes
7. who smokes cigarettes
8. which peer inquisitively from behind metal-rimmed glasses
10.which is worth at least ten dollars

Punctuating Adjective Clauses

These three guidelines will help you to decide when to set off an adjective clause with commas:

1. Adjective clauses beginning with that are never set off from the main clause with commas.

   Food that has turned green in the refrigerator should be thrown away.

2. Adjective clauses beginning with who or which should not be set off with commas if omitting the clause would change the basic meaning of the sentence.

   Students who turn green should be sent to the infirmary.

   Because we don't mean that all students should be sent to the infirmary, the adjective clause is essential to the meaning of the sentence. For this reason, we don't set off the adjective clause with commas.
3. Adjective clauses beginning with who or which should be set off with commas if omitting the clause would not change the basic meaning of the sentence.

   Last week's pudding, which has turned green in the refrigerator, should be thrown away.

   Here the which clause provides added, but not essential, information, and so we set it off from the rest of the sentence with commas.

PRACTICE: Punctuating Adjective Clauses
In the following sentences, add commas to set off adjective clauses that provide additional, but not essential, information. Don't add commas if the adjective clause affects the basic meaning of the sentence.

1. Caramel de Lites which are cookies sold by the Girl Scouts contain 70 calories each.
2. These are the times that try men's souls.
3. I refuse to live in any house that Jack built.
4. I left my son at the campus day-care center which is available to all full-time students with young children.
5. Students who have young children are invited to use the free day-care center.
6. A physician who smokes and overeats has no right to criticize the personal habits of her patients.
7. Gus who gave Merdine a bouquet of ragweed has been exiled to the storm cellar for a week.
8. Professor Legree lost his only umbrella which he has owned for 20 years.
9. Healthy people who refuse to work should not be given government assistance.
10. Felix who was once a hunter in the Yukon stunned the roach with one blow from a newspaper.

Answers
1. Caramel de Lites, which are cookies sold by the Girl Scouts, contain . . ..
2. (no commas)
3. (no commas)
4. . . . day-care center, which is available to all full-time students with young children.
5. (no commas)
6. (no commas)
7. Gus, who gave Merdine a bouquet of ragweed, has . . ..
8. . . . umbrella, which he has owned for 20 years.
9. (no commas)
10. Felix, who was once a hunter in the Yukon, stunned . . ..

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Relative Pronouns and Adjective Clauses