Pronoun Antecedent

Question

Does the rule for "which" i.e. it directly modifies the noun preceding it also follow for "who", "that", "when", "where", "whose", "whom"? Thanks

mikemcgarry · Answer

Dear qwerty12321 , I'm happy to respond. :-)

All of these words are known as relative pronouns and relative adverbs . They all start noun-modifying clauses. Now, the question about whether they directly modify the noun preceding them does not depend on the individual words --- it depends on the MEANING . In particular, it depends on the distinction of a vital vs. non-vital modifier. See: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/gmat-gramm ... modifiers/ Also, see: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/that-vs-which-on-the-gmat/ Notice that the relative pronouns & adverbs { who, when, where, whose, whom } can be either vital or non-vital, depending on meaning. The relative pronoun " which " is always used in non-vital circumstances, and this means it can be separated from its target noun by a vital modifier. For example, "... the first novel of Faulkner, which was published ..." The " which " clause modifiers " novel ", and this is perfectly correct, because " of Faulkner " is a vital modifying phrase. The relative pronoun " that " --- when this word is used as a relative pronoun --- always begins a vital modifying clause, so it almost always touches the target noun. Keep in mind, though, that the word " that " has many uses. See: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/gmat-sente ... s-of-that/ Does all this make sense? Mike :-)

Pronoun Antecedent

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