Hay un tipo de oraciones de relativo que aportan información esencial sobre su antecedente y sin ellas el sentido quedaría incompleto. Por eso van unidas a la oración principal sin coma entre ellas. Son las que llamamos especificativas (defining).

En este tipo de oraciones who (personas) y which (cosas) se pueden sustituir por that.  When (tiempo) se suele sustituir por that u omitir en contextos informales cuando va precedido de sustantivos que hacen referencia al tiempo (day, week, time, moment, etc.).

• The computer which/that we bought is very expensive.

• The man who/that is coming will bring us the present.

• That is the day (when/that) they got married. (Ese es el dia en que se casaron.)

Whose (posesión) y where (lugar) no pueden omitirse ni sustituirse por that.

• • She is the girl whose poem won the first prize. (Ella es la chica cuyo poema ganó el primer premio.)

  • That is the company where Martin works. (Esa es la empresa en la que trabaja Martin.)

En niveles intermedios, solemos usar pronombres como this o that para referirnos a algo que acabamos de decir. Sin embargo, para escribir de forma más sofisticada, podemos unir dos oraciones usando ", which".

En esta estructura, which no se refiere a la palabra que tiene justo delante, sino a todo el hecho o situación mencionado en la frase anterior.

• Nivel básico: The movie became a blockbuster. This was a surprise.

• Nivel avanzado: The movie became a blockbuster*, which** was a surprise.* (Aquí, which significa "el hecho de que la película fuera un éxito").

¡Cuidado con la coma!

Cuando usamos which de esta manera, siempre actúa como una oración de relativo explicativa (non-defining), por lo que siempre debe llevar una coma delante.

¿Which o What?

Muchos estudiantes soléis usar what en estas frases, pero es incorrecto. Para referirse a una idea anterior, siempre debemos usar which.

• ❌ The actor forgot his lines, what was embarrassing.

• ✅ The actor forgot his lines*, which** was embarrassing.*.

Fíjate en los siguientes ejemplos:

• The series is at the top of the charts, which is amazing news for the producers.

• The script was leaked online before the premiere, which caused a lot of problems for the studio.

• That viral video has reached ten million views, which shows how popular it is.

• The audience gave the musical a standing ovation, which made the cast very emotional.

En inglés, cuando una cláusula relativa incluye una preposición, su posición puede variar dependiendo de si el estilo es formal o informal. Lo más frecuente es colocar la preposición al final de la oración de relativo y omitir el pronombre relativo, sobre todo en inglés hablado. En contextos formales se pone la preposición delante del relativo.

• This is the boy about whom you were asking me. [formal]

• This is the boy (who) you were asking me about. [informal]

• I like the car about which you were talking. [formal]

• I like the car (which) you were talking about. [informal]

• This is the building in which I've lived for three years. [formal]

• This is the building (which) I've lived in for three years. [informal] (Este es el edificio en el que he vivido durante tres años.) 

• The man to whom he talked was the manager. [formal] 

• The man (who) he talked to was the manager. [informal] (El hombre con el que habló era el gerente.)

That nunca puede aparecer detrás de una preposición

Después de preposiciones empleamos whom para personas y which para cosas. 

"what" equivale/se puede sustituir por "the thing that"

1. I didn’t know _____________________________ e-sports were until today.

2. A controller and a screen is all _____________________________ you need.

3. Show me _____________________________ you bought. 

4. I believe _____________________________ he told me. 

5. You're that smart banker _____________________________ killed his wife

6. The police usually ask for every detail _____________________________ helps identify the missing person.

7. I could get you a job here if that’s _____________________________ you want.

8. There are so many things _____________________________ can go wrong.

9. Dessert is all _____________________________ he wants.

10. That's the thing _____________________________ I was talking about.

11. That's _____________________________ I was talking about.

12. This is _____________________________ we need

13. This is just the thing _____________________________ we need.

14. Nothing _____________________________ you say will make me feel any better about losing my pet.

15. Have you seen _____________________________ someone’s written on the wall?

16. Don’t worry about _____________________________ other people think.

Estas estructuras de relativo son muy comunes en el inglés informal y hablado.

1. La regla básica: de "Where" o "That + Preposición"

Puedes sustituir el relativo where (donde) por el pronombre that si mueves la preposición al final de la frase.

• Estructura formal/estándar: This is the city where he was born.

• Estructura con preposición al final: This is the city that he was born in.

2. Uso con otros pronombres (Which/Who)

Esta regla también se aplica a which o who. En contextos informales, es mucho más natural poner la preposición al final que utilizar estructuras formales como "at which" o "about whom".

3. La regla de la omisión

Es importante recordar que, en las oraciones especificativas (defining), cuando la preposición va al final, el pronombre (that, which, who) suele actuar como objeto y, por lo tanto, puede omitirse por completo.

• The TV show (that) I was telling you about. (El programa del que te hablaba).

A. Combine the following sentences using a relative clause. If possible, put the preposition at the end.

1. This is the series. I was telling you about it yesterday.

2. That is the director. I want to work with him in the future.

3. The musical was a huge success. We went to it last night.

4. This is the track. I am listening to it right now.

B. Rewrite the sentences replacing "where" with "that" and moving the preposition to the end.

1. That is the studio where the viral video was filmed.

2. This is the cinema where we saw the latest blockbuster.

3. I can't remember the club where the band played their first gig.

C. Combine using a non-defining relative clause (remember the commas!).

1. The script is amazing. It was put together by two famous writers.

2. The author has won an award. Her bestseller is at the top of the charts. (Use whose)

• Activity 1.

• Activity 2.

• Activity 3.

• Activity 4.

• Activity 5.

• Activity 6.

• Activity 7.

• Activity 8.

• Activity 9.

• Activity 10.

• Activity 11.

1. That city, ___________ is mostly famous for its fountains, is Rome.

2. Do you know the drawer ___________  your mother keeps her jewelry?

3. Vegas is the city  ___________ I got married.

4. Paris, ___________ is one of the most desired destinations in the world, is the capital of France.

5. The university ___________ I got my education is Davis.

6. The bridge ___________ was damaged by the hurricane is being rebuilt now.

7. Do you still remember the restaurant ___________ we met?

8. This is the place ___________ the accident took place.

9. That’s the famous Egyptian Palace ___________ is known worldwide.

10. Have you visited the museum ___________ was once a church?

11. The factory ___________ was shut down two years ago is currently functioning.

12. Has anybody seen the box ___________ I put my tools?

13. The hotel ___________ I work is very close to my house.

14. Have you been to the café ___________ is run by my friend Andrew?

15. How can I go to the beach ___________  we used to hang out?