Fourth Grade English: Relative Pronouns (Who, Whom, Whose, Which, That)

As you read advanced fourth-grade books, you will notice that authors rarely write in short, choppy sentences. Instead, they seamlessly weave related ideas together into fluid, sophisticated thoughts using a special family of connecting words known as relative pronouns. Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses—special descriptive clauses that tell us exactly which person, animal, or object is being discussed—allowing you to connect facts smoothly and write with greater sophistication.

What Is a Relative Pronoun?

A relative pronoun connects a descriptive dependent clause (a relative clause) to an antecedent noun that appeared earlier in the sentence.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                    THE RELATIVE PRONOUN BRIDGE                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Two Choppy Sentences:                                                |
|    "I met a scientist. The scientist studies volcanic eruptions."     |
|                                                                       |
|  Joined with Relative Pronoun 'WHO':                                  |
|    "I met a scientist [WHO studies volcanic eruptions]."              |
|                             |                                         |
|                             +---> Relative Clause describes scientist |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+

The Relative Pronoun Roster

There are five primary relative pronouns in English:
- "Who": Refers to people when acting as the subject of the relative clause.

- "Whom": Refers to people when acting as the object of a verb or preposition in the relative clause.

- "Whose": Shows possession or ownership (usually for people, but sometimes for animals or things).

- "Which": Refers to animals and inanimate things (most often in non-essential clauses set off by commas).

- "That": Refers to people, animals, or things in essential clauses that define the noun.


Choosing the Correct Relative Pronoun

Selecting the right relative pronoun depends on what noun you are describing and the role the pronoun plays inside the relative clause.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                 RELATIVE PRONOUN SELECTION CHART                |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Pronoun | Refers To?     | Grammatical Function | Example       |
+---------+----------------+----------------------+---------------+
| who     | People         | Subject of clause    | girl who sang |
| whom    | People         | Object of clause     | boy whom I met|
| whose   | People/Things  | Possessive           | dog whose tail|
| which   | Animals/Things | Non-essential details| car, which is |
| that    | Things/People  | Essential defining   | book that I read|
+---------+----------------+----------------------+---------------+

Who vs. Which and That

A fundamental rule in English is that we use "who" (or "whom") when referring to human beings, rather than "which" or "that."
- Correct: "The firefighter who rescued the kitten received an award."

- Avoid: "The firefighter which rescued the kitten..." (Firefighters are people, so use "who").


Who vs. Whom Made Simple

In fourth grade, you can master "who" versus "whom" using the "He / Him" substitution trick: If you would substitute "he," use "who" (both end in open sounds / subjects). If you would substitute "him," use "whom" (both end in the letter "m").
- Example 1: "The girl (who/whom) scored the goal..." Did he score or him score? He scored, so use "who."

- Example 2: "The teacher (who/whom) we met yesterday..." Did we meet he or him? We met him, so use "whom."


That vs. Which

In general American English: Use "that" for essential clauses that provide crucial identification without commas: "The book that is on the desk belongs to Liam." Use "which" for extra, non-essential details that are surrounded by commas: "The novel, which was published in 1952, remains a classic."

Combining Choppy Sentences Using Relative Pronouns

Practice combining pairs of simple sentences into mature, cohesive compound-complex sentences.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                  SENTENCE COMBINATION WORKSHOP                  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Choppy: We visited the museum. It houses dinosaur fossils.      |
| Smooth: We visited the museum that houses dinosaur fossils.     |
|                                                                 |
| Choppy: Meet Dr. Patel. Her research saved the coral reef.      |
| Smooth: Meet Dr. Patel, whose research saved the coral reef.    |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

Enhancing Sentence Flow

Notice how the combined sentences eliminate unnecessary repeated nouns and establish clear relationships between the actor and their achievements. This technique instantly elevates the sophistication of your informational reports and stories.

Practice Exercises

Practice Questions

  1. Choose the correct relative pronoun: "The pilot (who / which) flew the solar airplane set a world record."
  2. Choose the correct relative pronoun: "The telescope (who / that) orbits in space captured stunning photographs."
  3. Fill in the blank with "whose" or "who's": "The author ______ book won the award visited our school."
  4. Combine these two sentences using "who": "An architect is a professional. An architect designs buildings."
  5. Choose the correct word: "The student to (who / whom) the medal was presented smiled proudly."

Answer Key and Explanations

  1. Correct word: "who." The antecedent is "pilot," which refers to a person acting as the subject of the clause.
  2. Correct word: "that." "Telescope" is an inanimate object, so "who" cannot be used.
  3. Correct word: "whose." "Whose" is the possessive relative pronoun indicating ownership of the book. ("Who's" is a contraction meaning "who is").
  4. Combined sentence: "An architect is a professional who designs buildings."
  5. Correct word: "whom." It follows the preposition "to" and functions as the object of the preposition.