Non-Defining Relative Clauses - English Grammar Explained

Person 1: So my new boyfriend is tall  and he’s so funny and very clever,  

he has the most beautiful green eyes and he loves  to go to museums, which is why we get on so well.  

We actually went to a museum on our first date and  it was so romantic. We just think exactly the same  

thing about everything. So yeah, he’s really  kind and he teaches children to play football  

on Saturday mornings and I usually go to watch  so we can go out for lunch afterwards. Anyway,  

what was your question again? Person 2:  

What does he do for work? Person 1: Oh, he’s a dentist.

Giving more information than necessary is  something we do quite often. Sometimes you just  

decide to give more detail or you really want  someone to understand more about a situation.  

When giving non-essential extra information,  we use a non-defining relative clause.  

Non-defining means that this extra information  does not change the meaning of the sentence,  

it is purely used to give more detail. If you need to add an essential piece  

of information into a sentence, you can use a  defining relative clause instead. There’s already  

a video on my channel about those so I will put  a link in the description so that you can watch  

that one next and learn the differences. A sentence which includes a non-defining  

relative clause must also have a main  clause, which is split into two parts  

after the subject. Let’s use the example of a  meal which is delicious and is also vegetarian. 

The main clause would be ‘The meal is delicious’.  The subject in this sentence is the ‘meal’, so we  

put the non-defining relative clause in the middle  of the main clause, after the subject to get ‘The  

meal, which is vegetarian, is delicious’. The word  ‘which’ in this sentence is a relative pronoun.  

In the case of objects, places and things, you can  use the word ‘which’. However, when the subject  

of the sentence is a person, you should use the  word ‘who’ as the relative pronoun. For example:  

‘My sister, who is younger  than me, works in a school’. 

When putting an additional clause  into the middle of an existing clause,  

it is important to use commas to separate them  so that the sentence is easier to read and  

understand. In this case, you should put a comma  on either side of the non-defining relative clause  

when writing it down to show this and you’ll  often hear Native English speakers naturally  

pausing in the place of these commas to make  it clear when speaking and listening too. 

Our wedding, which is in July,  is going to have 120 guests. 

Their French teacher, who is new to  the school, is absolutely brilliant. 

My cooking skills, which are very limited,  have improved since I bought this cookbook. 

So now you know all about how to  add additional information using  

a non-defining relative clause  in the middle of a sentence.  

It’s time to put that knowledge to the test. I am  going to give you 5 people or objects and I would  

like you to describe them in the comments using a  sentence with a non-defining relative clause, like  

the ones we have been practicing. Your answers  can be real or you can use your imagination to  

describe things that don’t really exist but I  would like you to be as creative as you can. 

First of all, I would like you  to describe your ideal pet. 

Next, I would like you to describe the  most important teacher you had at school. 

Thirdly, I would like you to  describe your favourite city. 

Now I would like you to describe  your childhood best friend. 

Lastly, I would like you to  describe your favourite meal. 

So there were 5 sentences for you to  write in the comments for your homework.  

I’m looking forward to reading them and  seeing your new English skills in action  

with your non-defining relative clauses.  Take care for now. I'll see you soon