Restrictive and Nonrestrictive Adjective Clauses
A restrictive clause is one that is necessary to the sentence because it restricts or limits the noun or
pronoun it describes. Here are some examples:
 People who chew gum while talking irritate me.
 The customer wants a car that has leather interior.
(No commas)
All people don’t irritate me—only those who chew gum while talking. The customer doesn’t want any
car—only one with leather interior. Therefore, these are restrictive clauses because they limit the
meaning of people and car and do not need commas.
A nonrestrictive clause is added or extra information which doesn’t change the meaning of the noun it
describes. Here are some examples:
 My job hunt, which isn’t going very well, is exhausting!
(Commas)
 The government can’t decide on an immigration policy, which is unfortunate for our
neighboring countries.
These clauses don’t change the meaning of job hunt or policy. They are simply added information.
Therefore, they are separated from the sentence by commas.
Which or that?
Rule: Use that for restrictive clauses and which for nonrestrictive clauses.
In informal speaking and writing, which or that can be used in restrictive clauses, but in formal writing,
we generally stick to the rule. Here are some tendencies observed in the speech and writing of native
speakers:
a) In clauses that follow impersonal constructions such as “It is…,” that is preferred.
 It was a hard choice that we had to make.
 It is essential that you learn the language for your own safety.
b) Clauses that refer back to the words anything, nothing, something, or everything have a slight
preference for that over which:.
 Can you think of anything that remains to be done?
 Everything that you see here is for sale.
c) Clauses that follow a superlative also tend to prefer that:
 Thank you for the most delicious soup that I’ve ever eaten.
 The best boutique that sells baby clothes is Baby Bear.
Marcia Arthur RTC level5-6/grammar-clauses/adjective clauses/which-that
Practice
Read the following sentences and mark them as R for restrictive clause and N for nonrestrictive clause.
Then put commas around the non-restrictive clauses.
___1. Charles Dickens who was a great writer in the late 19th Century is the author of Little Dorrit.
___2. That piece of chocolate cake which probably had a million calories in it was delicious.
___3. My favorite place to ski is Snow Basin in Utah which is one of the least crowded resorts.
___4. The guy that my old roommate married is boring.
___5. He reads and studies maps for fun which is no exaggeration.
___6. I love the kind of weather that you find in Arizona.
___7. My graduation which I am extremely proud of has been hard earned.
___8. I am jealous of a guy in my neighborhood who drives a hot 1969 Mustang.
___9. Methods of Teaching English which is my favorite class this semester meets on Tuesday nights.
___10. Of everyone in the class, I had the answer that made the most sense.
___11. Only people who speak Russian should apply for the job.
___12. Irina who speaks Russian applied for the job.
___13. Marco and Guillermo who did not come to class yesterday couldn’t explained their absence.
___14. The students who did not come to class yesterday explained their absence to the teacher.
___15. The geologist who lectured at Browning Hall last night predicted another earthquake.
___16. Dr. Fields who lectured at Browning Hall last night predicted another earthquake.
___17. The rice which we had for dinner last night was very good.
___18. Rice which is grown in many countries is a staple food throughout much of the world.
___19. I have good memories of my hometown which is situated in the mountains.
___20. I live in a town which is situated in the mountains.
___21. The Mississippi River which flows south from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico is the major
commercial river in the United States.
___22. A river which is polluted is not safe for swimming.
___23. The man whom I spoke to was wearing a black hat.
___24. The man who must have been in his forties really scared me.
___25. We enjoyed Mexico City where we spent our vacation.
Marcia Arthur RTC level5-6/grammar-clauses/adjective clauses/which-that
Answers
N 1. Charles Dickens, who was a great writer in the late 19th Century, is the author of Little Dorrit.
N 2. That piece of chocolate cake, which probably had a million calories in it, was delicious.
N 3. My favorite place to ski is Snow Basin in Utah, which is one of the least crowded resorts.
R 4. The guy that my old roommate married is boring.
N 5. He reads and studies maps for fun, which is no exaggeration.
R 6. I love the kind of weather that you find in Arizona.
N 7. My graduation, which I am extremely proud of, has been hard earned.
R 8. I am jealous of a guy in my neighborhood who drives a hot 1969 Mustang.
N 9. Methods of Teaching English, which is my favorite class this semester, meets on Tuesday nights.
R 10. Of everyone in the class, I had the answer that made the most sense.
R 11. Only people who speak Russian should apply for the job.
N 12. Irina, who speaks Russian, applied for the job.
N 13. Marco and Guillermo, who did not come to class yesterday, couldn’t explained their absence.
R 14. The students who did not come to class yesterday explained their absence to the teacher.
R 15. The geologist who lectured at Browning Hall last night predicted another earthquake.
N 16. Dr. Fields, who lectured at Browning Hall last night, predicted another earthquake.
R 17. The rice which we had for dinner last night was very good.
N 18. Rice, which is grown in many countries, is a staple food throughout much of the world.
N 19. I have good memories of my hometown, which is situated in the mountains.
R 20. I live in a town which is situated in the mountains.
N 21. The Mississippi River, which flows south from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, is the major
commercial river in the United States.
R 22. A river which is polluted is not safe for swimming.
R 23. The man whom I spoke to was wearing a black hat.
N 24. The man, who must have been in his forties, really scared me.
N 25. We enjoyed Mexico City, where we spent our vacation.
Marcia Arthur RTC level5-6/grammar-clauses/adjective clauses/which-that