Virtuous English AcademyAdvanced Relative and Participle Clauses (B2)
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- #Grammar
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This lesson develops relative clauses with quantifiers (many of whom), prepositions and reduced forms. These structures let you pack information elegantly into a single sentence.
B2 relative clauses are about density and register. Reduced clauses, participle clauses, fronted prepositions and quantifier structures let you pack information into a sentence without producing a chain of short, disconnected statements.
Participle clauses are the most powerful of these. Written in 1954, the novel remains controversial replaces a full relative clause and a coordinating conjunction with four words. They appear constantly in journalism, academic prose and formal reports, and recognising them is essential for reading at this level.
The register dimension matters just as much. The person I spoke to and the person to whom I spoke are grammatically equivalent but socially distinct. Writing that mixes the two inconsistently reads as unsure of itself, so B2 requires choosing a register and maintaining it.
How to form Relative and Participle Clauses
| Structure | Full form | Reduced form |
|---|---|---|
| Active reduction | the man who is waiting | the man waiting |
| Passive reduction | the letters which were sent | the letters sent |
| Perfect participle | because she had finished, she left | having finished, she left |
| Participle clause of reason | as it was written in 1954 | written in 1954, … |
| Fronted preposition | the room which we met in | the room in which we met |
| Quantifier + of whom | there were thirty; ten failed | thirty candidates, ten of whom failed |
| Sentential which | he resigned and that shocked us | he resigned, which shocked us |
Relative and Participle Clauses: the key rules
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Reduced relative clauses cut the pronoun and be: -ing for active meaning, past participle for passive.
The woman standing by the door is the director. The proposal submitted last week was approved.
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Preposition + which/whom is the formal register; stranded prepositions the neutral one.
the framework within which we operate / the framework we operate within
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Sentential which comments on an entire clause.
He apologised immediately, which took courage.
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Whereby, wherein and 'in which case' handle processes and consequences in formal prose.
A scheme whereby employees share profits.
When to use Relative and Participle Clauses
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Condensing information in formal writing
Reduced clauses eliminate redundant words without losing meaning.
Applicants holding a relevant degree may skip the first stage.
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Opening a sentence with background
Participle clauses front the reason or the circumstance before the main statement.
Having reviewed the evidence, the committee reached a unanimous decision.
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Quantifying a previously mentioned group
Of whom and of which describe a subset without starting a new sentence.
The firm employs 400 people, most of whom work remotely.
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Commenting on a whole proposition
Sentential which lets you evaluate the entire preceding clause.
The deadline was moved twice, which made planning impossible.
Participle clauses: -ing vs. -ed
The choice depends on whether the noun performs the action or receives it — exactly the active-passive distinction.
-ing — active meaning
The noun is doing the action. Reduces who is doing or who does.
The team managing the project is based in Leeds.
-ed / past participle — passive meaning
The noun receives the action. Reduces which was done or which is done.
The report submitted last week has been approved.
Relative and Participle Clauses in example sentences
- Anyone wishing to attend should register by Friday.Active reduction — formal notice register.
- The proposals rejected at the last meeting have been revised.Passive reduction.
- Having worked there for a decade, she knew every process.Perfect participle giving background.
- Built in the 1890s, the station is now listed.Participle clause of description opening the sentence.
- The conditions under which they operate are unregulated.Fronted preposition — formal.
- She interviewed sixty workers, none of whom would be named.Quantifier with of whom.
- The results were withheld, which raised obvious questions.Sentential which commenting on the whole clause.
- Not knowing the address, we asked at the station.Negative participle clause giving a reason.
Relative and Participle Clauses in a real conversation
The written quotations use the dense formal structures; the spoken lines stay simple.
Supervisor:How does the introduction open?
Student:Written during the war, the text reflects its period.
Supervisor:Good. And the sample?
Student:I surveyed ninety readers, most of whom had studied literature.
Supervisor:Any who hadn't?
Student:Twelve, which actually made the comparison more interesting.
Common mistakes (and how to fix them)
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The students which enrolled late missed the induction.
The students who enrolled late missed the induction.
People take who even in dense formal prose.
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The report published it yesterday caused a stir.
The report published yesterday caused a stir.
A reduced passive clause keeps no object pronoun — the participle alone modifies the noun.
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We visited the town where he grew up in.
We visited the town where he grew up. / the town (that) he grew up in.
Where already absorbs the preposition — where…in doubles it.
Practise Relative and Participle Clauses today
Reduction is mechanical once you see the pattern — practise in both directions.
- Reduce eight full relative clauses, four active and four passive.
- Expand six reduced clauses back into full relative clauses.
- Write four sentences opening with a participle clause giving reason or background.
- Write four sentences using of whom and of which with different quantifiers.
Relative and Participle Clauses: frequently asked questions
When can a relative clause be reduced?
Only when the relative pronoun is the subject of its clause. The man who is waiting reduces to the man waiting because who is the subject. The man who I met cannot reduce in the same way, because there I is the subject — though it can drop the pronoun entirely, giving the man I met. Reduction and pronoun omission are two different operations with different conditions.
Do participle clauses need to share a subject with the main clause?
Yes, and failing to observe this produces a dangling participle. Having finished the report, the printer jammed implies the printer finished the report. The subject of the participle must be the subject of the main clause: Having finished the report, I found the printer had jammed. This is one of the most common errors in B2 and academic writing.
Is which for a whole clause acceptable in formal writing?
Yes, provided a comma precedes it and the reference is unambiguous. The delay cost us the contract, which was entirely avoidable is fine. Problems arise when a noun sits immediately before which and could be mistaken for the antecedent. In those cases, rephrasing with a fact which or simply starting a new sentence is clearer.
How formal is the fronted preposition?
Distinctly formal, and it can sound stilted in ordinary prose. The house in which I grew up belongs in an academic or literary register; the house I grew up in is what almost everyone says and writes. Reserve fronting for genuinely formal documents, and note that it is obligatory only in a few fixed structures such as the extent to which.