RELATIVE CLAUSES WITH PREPOSITIONS

1. A relative pronoun (e.g. that) can be the object of a preposition (e.g. for):

e.g. This is the bus that I’ve been waiting for. (= I’ve been waiting for the bus)

e.g. The restaurant thatwe normally go to is closed today. (= We normally go to

the restaurant)

e.g. That’s the town that he was born in. (= He was born in that town)

2. The relative pronoun is often left out when it is the object of a preposition:

e.g. The bus that I’m waiting for is late. à The bus I’m waiting for is late.

e.g. The people that I stayed with were very kind. à The people I stayed with were very kind.

3. Typical of formal English is the use of preposition at the beginning if the relative clause before which or whom:

e.g. Was that the restaurant to which you normally go?

e.g. Electronics is a subject about which I know very little.

e.g. The Sales Manager is the person from whom I obtained the figures.

But we cannot put a preposition before that or who:

e.g. It is the subject (that) I know little about. (not: It is the subject about that I know.)

e.g. The person (who) I got the figures from. (not: the person from who I got the figures.)

4. We can use all of/ most of etc. + whom/which:

e.g. Mary has three brothers. All of them are married. à Mary has three brother all ofwhomare married.

e.g. They asked me a lot of questions. I couldn’t answer most of them. à They asked me a lot of questions, most ofwhich I couldn’t answer.

5. In the same way we can say:

None of/ neither of/ any of/ either of

Some of/ many of/ much of/ (a) few of + whom(people)/ which (things)

Both of / half of/ each of/ one of/ two of, etc.

e.g. Martin tried on three jackets, none of which fitted him.

e.g. Two men, either of whom I had seen before, came into the office.