Relative Clauses Quiz
Do you know when to use who, which, that or whose? Test your understanding of restrictive and non-restrictive relative clauses across 20 multiple-choice exercises at B1–B2 level.
Start the Quiz →What This Quiz Covers
Relative clauses let you add information about a noun without starting a new sentence. Choosing the right relative pronoun — and deciding whether to use a comma or not — is one of the most nuanced areas of English grammar at B1 and B2 level. This quiz challenges you across the full range of relative clause types, from straightforward subject clauses (the man who called) to complex non-restrictive structures with which referring back to a whole clause.
The 20 items cover everyday contexts: describing people, objects, places, and situations in both spoken and written registers. Each question is designed to surface the most common decision points — pronoun choice, comma placement, omission of the pronoun — so that you build both accuracy and confidence.
By the end of the quiz you will have a clear picture of which relative clause patterns you handle well and which need further practice. Use your results to guide your next study session with the grammar hub or one of the targeted exercises below.
Topics Covered in This Quiz
- Choosing between who and which to refer to people versus things and animals.
- Using that as an alternative to who or which in restrictive (defining) relative clauses.
- Forming restrictive relative clauses that define which specific person or thing is meant, with no commas.
- Forming non-restrictive relative clauses that add extra information, always separated by commas and never using that.
- Using whose to express possession in relative clauses about people, organisations and things.
- Omitting the relative pronoun in object relative clauses where it is the object of the embedded verb (the book I read).
- Using where and when as relative adverbs to refer to places and times instead of which with a preposition.
- Placing prepositions correctly in relative clauses, including formal structures like the person to whom versus informal the person who … to.
How to Use This Quiz
Read each sentence carefully and choose the option that best completes the relative clause. Pay attention to whether the missing word refers to a person or a thing, whether the clause is restrictive or non-restrictive (look for commas), and whether the pronoun is the subject or object of the embedded verb.
If you are unsure about an answer, note the question number and review the relevant rule in the grammar hub before or after taking the quiz. You can also practise choosing relative pronouns in context using the Complete the Sentence exercise, which covers similar grammar points with immediate feedback.
Aim to complete the quiz in one sitting without looking up answers. This gives you an accurate snapshot of your current level so you know exactly what to work on next.
After finishing, revisit any questions you got wrong and try to articulate why the correct pronoun was required. Verbalising the rule — for example, "I need whose here because I'm showing possession" — helps embed the pattern more durably than passive review. If you score below 14/20, work through the exercises listed below before retaking the quiz.
Who Should Take This Quiz
This quiz is aimed at learners at B1 and B2 level on the CEFR scale — roughly equivalent to Cambridge B2 First (FCE), IELTS band 5.5–6.5, or students in the third or fourth year of secondary school English. If you are preparing for a Cambridge exam, a job application in English, or simply want cleaner, more sophisticated written English, mastering relative clauses will give you an immediate and noticeable improvement in both writing and reading.
Intermediate learners who already understand basic subject–verb–object word order but find themselves hesitating between who and which, or who accidentally write sentences like the car which it broke down (incorrect double subject), will find this quiz especially valuable. Advanced learners (C1) can use it as a timed revision tool to maintain accuracy under pressure.
Teachers and tutors can share this page directly with students as a diagnostic tool before a lesson on relative clauses, or as a follow-up activity to consolidate a recent grammar explanation. The quiz requires no registration, no download, and no fee — students can access it on any device via the link above.
Why Relative Clauses Matter
Relative clauses are one of the defining features of B2-level English. At A1 and A2 level, learners typically produce short, simple sentences: I have a brother. He lives in Paris. From B1 onward, the ability to combine these into a single, fluent sentence — I have a brother who lives in Paris — marks a significant step in syntactic complexity. At B2 and above, learners are expected to handle both restrictive and non-restrictive clauses correctly, including the subtle punctuation distinction between them.
In academic and professional writing, relative clauses allow you to pack more precise information into a sentence without making it feel disjointed. Compare: The report was published. It analysed climate trends. It was produced by the UN. versus The report produced by the UN, which analysed climate trends, was published last month. The second version is more concise, more fluent, and more natural — and it requires accurate use of two relative clauses.
For exam candidates, the Grammatical Range and Accuracy criterion in IELTS Writing bands 6–7 explicitly rewards the accurate use of complex structures, of which relative clauses are a key example. In CEFR terms, using relative clauses correctly is part of the B2 descriptor for grammatical control. This quiz helps you build and verify that control before it matters in a real assessment context.
Related Quizzes
Related Exercises
Further Reading on Grammar
If you want to deepen your understanding of relative clauses beyond what this quiz covers, the grammar hub contains explanations and examples for every major grammar point at A1–C1 level. For a broader view of how clauses, tenses and modals interact in complex English sentences, see the following blog articles:
- English Grammar Tenses — Complete Guide — how to choose the right tense in main and subordinate clauses.
- English Conditionals Guide — another key B1–B2 structure that often appears alongside relative clauses in writing tasks.
- English Modal Verbs Guide — modals inside relative clauses, e.g. the person who could help you.
- English Grammar for Beginners — foundational concepts that make relative clauses easier to understand.
- CEFR Levels Explained — understand exactly which grammar structures are expected at B1 and B2.
Quick Reference: Relative Pronoun Checklist
Use this checklist before starting the quiz to refresh the core rules:
- who — subject or object pronoun for people: the nurse who treated me / the nurse who I met.
- whom — formal object pronoun for people, required after prepositions: the colleague with whom I worked.
- which — subject or object pronoun for things; the only option in non-restrictive clauses referring to things; also used for whole-clause reference.
- that — subject or object pronoun for people or things in restrictive clauses only; never after a comma, never after a preposition.
- whose — possessive for people and things; always followed directly by a noun.
- where — relative adverb for places; replaces in/at which.
- when — relative adverb for times; replaces in/on/at which; can often be omitted.
- why — relative adverb used after reason: the reason why it happened.
Keep this list in mind as you work through the quiz, then check the grammar hub for any pronoun that still feels uncertain after you finish.
Frequently Asked Questions
A relative clause is a type of subordinate clause that modifies a noun or noun phrase, adding information about it. It is introduced by a relative pronoun (who, whom, whose, which, that) or a relative adverb (where, when, why). The pronoun or adverb connects the clause back to the noun it describes, called the antecedent. For example: The woman who called yesterday is my colleague. Here, who called yesterday is the relative clause and the woman is the antecedent.
A restrictive (defining) relative clause identifies which specific person or thing is meant — without it, the meaning of the sentence would be unclear. It is not separated from the main clause by commas. Example: The student who passed the exam celebrated. (Only the student who passed, not all students.) A non-restrictive (non-defining) relative clause adds extra information about a noun that is already clearly identified; it can be removed without changing the core meaning, and it is always separated by commas. Example: My sister, who lives in London, is visiting next week. Only who, which and whose are used in non-restrictive clauses — never that.
Use who (or whom in formal writing) to refer to people: the teacher who helped me. Use which to refer to things, animals and ideas: the report which was submitted. Use that as an alternative to both who and which, but only in restrictive clauses: the teacher that helped me / the report that was submitted. Crucially, that is never used in non-restrictive clauses (those with commas). In everyday speech, that is slightly more informal than who or which, but both are correct in restrictive clauses.
Whose is the possessive relative pronoun. It replaces his, her, its or their and shows that something belongs to the antecedent. It is used for both people and things. Examples: The author whose novel won the prize will speak tonight. (The author's novel won the prize.) We stayed in a hotel whose rooms overlooked the sea. (The hotel's rooms overlooked the sea.) Whose is always followed directly by a noun — do not add the or an article between whose and the noun it modifies.
Yes, but only in restrictive clauses where the relative pronoun is the object of the embedded verb (i.e. there is a different subject inside the clause). Compare: The book that I read was fascinating. Here that is the object of read (I is the subject), so it can be dropped: The book I read was fascinating. However, when the relative pronoun is the subject of the embedded verb, it cannot be omitted: The book that won the prize cannot become The book won the prize without changing the meaning entirely. You can never omit whose, and you can never omit a relative pronoun from a non-restrictive clause.
Instead of saying the city in which I grew up or the day on which we met, English allows you to use the relative adverbs where and when: the city where I grew up, the day when we met. Where replaces in/at/to which after nouns of place; when replaces in/on/at which after nouns of time such as the year, the moment, the time. In informal speech, when can often be omitted altogether: the day we met. You can also use why after reason: the reason why she left.
Prepositions in relative clauses can be placed in two positions. In formal or written English, the preposition comes before the relative pronoun: the company for which she works, the person to whom I spoke. Note that only which and whom can follow a preposition — never that or who. In informal spoken English, the preposition is placed at the end of the clause: the company which/that she works for, the person who I spoke to. Both are grammatically correct; choose based on register. End-placed prepositions are extremely common in everyday speech.
A sentential (or clausal) relative clause uses which to refer back to the entire preceding clause rather than a single noun. Example: She arrived on time, which surprised everyone. Here which refers to the whole fact that she arrived on time. Sentential relative clauses are always non-restrictive and are always introduced by which with a comma — never that. They are common in both written and spoken English when the speaker wants to comment on or evaluate a previously stated situation.
The most frequent errors at B1–B2 level are: (1) using that in a non-restrictive clause — My mother, that is a doctor, … is incorrect; use who. (2) Adding a pronoun after the relative pronoun — the man who he called me instead of the man who called me or the man who called me. (3) Confusing whose with who's (a contraction of who is). (4) Using which for people in formal writing — prefer who. (5) Forgetting that commas are mandatory in non-restrictive clauses and forbidden in restrictive ones, as their presence or absence changes the meaning of the sentence.
In IELTS Academic and General Writing, examiners reward candidates who use complex sentence structures including relative clauses accurately. Mis-punctuating non-restrictive clauses (omitting commas) or using that where which is required are errors that can lower the Grammatical Range and Accuracy score. In Cambridge B2 First (FCE), relative clauses appear in Use of English Part 4 (Key Word Transformation), where you may need to combine two sentences using a relative pronoun, and in Part 2 (Open Cloze), where missing relative pronouns must be supplied. Practising this quiz is a direct and efficient preparation for both exam types.