RELATIVE CLAUSES - More Help for Beginners :) In English, relative clauses are so-called, because they relate back to the noun (antecedent) they are describing. The word that stands in for the noun is called a relative pronoun and sets off the relative clause. The house that we were painting was two stories high. antecedent - (the house) relative clause - (that we were painting) relative pronoun - (that) In English (not in German) sometimes the relative pronoun is implied and can be omitted. The house we were painting was two stories high. In German, the relative clause is set off by commas. The verb in the relative clause is kicked to the end of the clause. The relative pronoun denotes the case, gender, and number of its antecedent within the clause. Hunde, die bellen, beißen nicht. (Dogs that bark do not bite.) antecedent - (Hunde) relative clause - (die bellen) relative pronoun - (die) Ich suche ein Buch, das die Berliner U-Bahn beschreibt. (I am looking for a book that describes the Berlin subway.) antecedent - (ein Buch) relative clause - (das die Berliner U-Bahn beschreibt) relative pronoun - (das) Remember that relative pronouns describe not only the gender, but also the case of the noun in question. Ich brauche einen Wagen, den ich mir leisten kann. (I need a car that I can afford.) antecedent - (einen Wagen) relative clause - (den ich mir leisten kann) relative pronoun - (den) Note that sometimes the antecedent is not in the same case as the relative pronoun. Das ist der Kuchen, den ich gebacken habe. (That is the cake that I baked.) antecedent - (der Kuchen) relative clause - (den ich gebacken habe) relative pronoun - (den) When a preposition is used, the preposition will precede the relative pronoun. Die Leute, bei denen ich wohne, sind nett. (The people, with whom I live, are nice.) antecedent - (die Leute) relative clause - (bei denen ich wohne) relative pronoun - (denen) preposition - (bei) Here are the relative pronouns and their cases... Nominative. masc. der fem. die neut. das pl. die Accusative masc. den fem. die neut. das pl. die Dative masc. dem fem. der neut. dem pl. denen Genitive masc. dessen fem. deren neut. dessen pl. deren Note: In English the relative pronoun (that) and the conjunction (that) are the same word. Be careful not to mix the two up in German. Das Buch, das ich gelesen habe, ist interessant. (correct) Das Buch, dass ich gelesen habe, ist interessant. (incorrect)
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 15:01:25 +0000
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