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Zero conditional - explanation + activities

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Zero conditional - explanation + activities

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We can make a zero conditional sentence with two present simple verbs (one in the 'if clause' and one in the 'main clause'):

If + present simple, .... present simple.

This conditional is used when the result will always happen. So, if water reaches 100 degrees, it always boils. It's a fact. I'm talking in general, not about one particular situation. The result of the 'if clause' is always the main clause.
The 'if' in this conditional can usually be replaced by 'when' without changing the meaning.

For example: If water reaches 100 degrees, it boils. (It is always true, there can't be a different result sometimes). If I eat peanuts, I am sick. (This is true only for me, maybe, not for everyone, but it's still true that I'm sick every time I eat peanuts)
Here are some more examples:
See this page about the first conditional to learn about the difference between the first and the zero conditionals. The first conditional is about a specific situation, but the zero is talking in general.
Click here to download this explanation as a pdf.
Click here for an exercise about making this conditional.
Click here for all the conditional exercises.

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Lots of clear explanations and exercises about the zero conditional

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First conditional - explanation + activities

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First conditional - explanation + activities

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The first conditional has the present simple after 'if', then the future simple in the other clause:

if + present simple, ... will + infinitive

It's used to talk about things which might happen in the future. Of course, we can't know what will happen in the future, but this describes possible things, which could easily come true.

If it rains, I won't go to the park.

If I study today, I'll go to the party tonight.

If I have enough money, I'll buy some new shoes.

She'll be late if the train is delayed.

She'll miss the bus if she doesn't leave soon.

First vs. Zero Conditional:
The first conditional describes a particular situation, whereas the zero conditional describes what happens in general.

For example (zero conditional): if you sit in the sun, you get burned (here I'm talking about every time a person sits in the sun - the burning is a natural consequence of the sitting)

But (first conditional): if you sit in the sun, you'll get burned (here I'm talking about what will happen today, another day might be different)
First vs. Second Conditional:
The first conditional describes things that I think are likely to happen in the future, whereas the second conditional talks about things that I don't think will really happen. It's subjective; it depends on my point of view.

For example (first conditional): If she studies harder, she'll pass the exam (I think it's possible she will study harder and so she'll pass)

But (second conditional): If she studied harder, she would pass the exam (I think that she won't study harder, or it's very unlikely, and so she won't pass)
Click here to download this explanation as a pdf.
Click here for an exercise about making the first conditional.
Click here for all the conditional exercises.

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Learn about the first conditional here - with easy explanations and lots of exercises

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Second conditional - explanation + exercises

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Second conditional - explanation + exercises

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The second conditional uses the past simple after if, then 'would' and the infinitive:

if + past simple, ...would + infinitive

(We can use 'were' instead of 'was' with 'I' and 'he/she/it'. This is mostly done in formal writing).

It has two uses.

First, we can use it to talk about things in the future that are probably not going to be true. Maybe I'm imagining some dream for example.

If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house.(I probably won't win the lottery)

If I met the Queen of England, I would say hello.

She would travel all over the world if she were rich.

She would pass the exam if she ever studied.(She never studies, so this won't happen)

Second, we can use it to talk about something in the present which is impossible, because it's not true. Is that clear? Have a look at the examples:

If I had his number, I would call him. (I don't have his number now, so it's impossible for me to call him).

If I were you, I wouldn't go out with that man.

How is this different from the first conditional?
This kind of conditional sentence is different from the first conditional because this is a lot more unlikely.

For example (second conditional): If I had enough money I would buy a house with twenty bedrooms and a swimming pool (I'm probably not going to have this much money, it's just a dream, not very real)

But (first conditional): If I have enough money, I'll buy some new shoes (It's much more likely that I'll have enough money to buy some shoes)
Click here to download this explanation as a pdf. Click here to practise making the second conditional. Click here for all the conditional exercises.

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How can we use the second conditional? Easy explanations and lots of practice exercises

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Mixed conditionals - Explanation + exercises

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Mixed conditionals - Explanation + exercises

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Wordwall - Crea mejores lecciones de forma más rápida

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0 Conditional: You should call me if you see something unusual., If we heat water to 100º C, it boils., If I don´t water the plants, they die., If Ana plays, the team wins. , Jessica cries if she sees a cat., 1st Conditional: If you are free tonight, we will go out for a drink, or to the cinema. , He will be depressed if he fails the exam., If my mother gives me money, I will buy a new jacket., Grace will be very happy if her team wins the championship. , If I eat a lot of chocolate, I will have a lot of acne. , 2nd Contitional: If I didn't know you, I would think you were crazy, If you had a bigger salary, you would buy more unnecessary things, If they had this player, they wouldn´t lose any match., Our lives would be much easier if you worked closer to home., If I got a job in France, we would eat crepes every day,

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0 Conditional: You should call me if you see something unusual., If we heat water to 100º C, it boils., If I don´t water the plants, they die., 1st Conditional:

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Conditionals with unless, othwerwise and provided that worksheet

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Liveworksheets transforms your traditional printable worksheets into self-correcting interactive exercises that the students can do online and send to the teacher.

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Unless, otherwise & provided that: Baamboozle

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Unless, otherwise & provided that: Baamboozle

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English Grammar Exercise - If vs. Unless - Exercise 1|Fill in the gaps with if or unless.

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Fill in the blanks with if, unless or otherwise.

Answers

1. We must hurry up; otherwise we will miss the train.

2. If we do not hurry up, we will miss the train.

3. Unless we hurry up, we will miss the train.

4. You must work hard; otherwise, you will fail the test.

5. If you do not work hard, you will fail the test.

6. Unless you work hard, you will fail the test.

7. You are in love with him. Why do you want to pretend otherwise?

8. I hope she mends her ways. Otherwise, she will be sacked. (= If she does not mend her ways, she will be sacked.)

9. The vaccine has saved tens of thousands of children who would otherwise have died.

10. Of course she is interested in him. Otherwise, she wouldn't be asking about his whereabouts.
Notes
The word otherwise can be used in several different ways. Otherwise can be used to introduce the possible outcome of a given situation. The same idea can be expressed using if not or unless. Otherwise can also be used as an ordinary adverb.

Otherwise can mean if not. It is used for saying that if one thing does not happen, something else (usually bad) will happen. Otherwise can also be used to suggest that something is true because the situation will be different if it was not true.

She must be very intelligent; otherwise, she wouldn't have solved this puzzle.

Otherwise can mean differently.

Governments must ban or otherwise prevent the sale of illicit liquor.

Otherwise can also be used to suggest that something is true except for the fact you have just mentioned.

The train was crowded but otherwise the journey was pleasant.

I am a bit tired but otherwise I am all right.

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Fill in the blanks with if, unless or otherwise. Answers 1. We must hurry up; otherwise we will miss the train. 2. If we do

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Choose IF or Unless exercise with answers - Online and printable version available for teachers

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English grammar exercise about passive verbs with the present simple tense

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English grammar exercise about passive verbs with the past simple tense

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English grammar exercise about passive verbs with the present perfect tense

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English grammar exercise about passive verbs with the future simple tense

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English grammar exercise about passive verbs with mixed tenses

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Passive Voice - English Grammar Exercises

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Passive Voice - Learning English with our free Online Exercises

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Wordwall - Crea mejores lecciones de forma más rápida

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1) Coffee ..... in Colombia. a) grown b) is grown c) is grew d) was grown 2) The book "Rayuela" ..... by Julio Cortazar. a) is written b) wrote c) was wrote d) was written 3) A lot of meat ..... in Argentina. a) is eaten b) eats c) are eaten d) was ate 4) Mercedes Benz cars ...... in Germany. a) is made b) are make c) were made d) are made 5) Microsoft ..... by Bill Gates. a) is created b) were created c) are created d) was created 6) The best computers ..... by Apple. a) made b) are made c) makes d) is made 7) A wax figure of Lady Gaga ..... at Maddame Tussauds last year. a) was displayed b) are displayed c) is displayed d) displays 8) The report of coronavirus ..... every day. a) informs b) is informed c) are informed d) were informed 9) This great exercise ..... by my teacher! a) prepared b) is prepare c) was prepare d) was prepared 10) All the topics ...... in the meeting last Friday. a) are discuss b) were discuss c) are discussed d) were discussed 11) The famous Toy Story films ..... by Pixar. a) were produced b) produced c) were produce d) is produced 12) My sister ..... a new mobile phone for her birthday! a) gave b) gives c) was given d) is give

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1) Coffee ..... in Colombia. 2) The book "Rayuela" ..... by Julio Cortazar. 3) A lot of meat ..... in Argentina. 4) Mercedes Benz cars ...... in Germany.

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Wordwall - Cree mejores lecciones de forma más rápida

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1) Pete does his homework every day. a) Active Present Simple b) Passive Present Simple c) Passive Past Simple d) Active Past Simple 2) My homework is done every day. a) Active Past Simple b) Passive Past Simple c) Active Present Simple d) Passive Present Simple 3) We were at home yesterday. a) Passive Past Simple b) Active Past Simple c) Passive Present Simple d) Active Present Simple 4) Those photos were made by my uncle. a) Active Present Simple b) Passive Present Simple c) Passive Past Simple d) Active Past Simple 5) The change is given by a cashier. a) Active Present Simple b) Passive Present Simple c) Active Past Simple d) Passive Past Simple 6) We are usually picked up by my dad. a) Active Present Simple b) Active Past Simple c) Passive Present Simple d) Passive Past Simple 7) we have already read this book a) past simple passive b) past simple active c) present perfect passive d) present perfect active 8) this is going to be written a) future passive b) present simple active c) future active d) present simple passive 9) she might.......in the new job a) be accept b) is accepted c) was accept d) be accepted

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1) Pete does his homework every day. a) Active Present Simple b) Passive Present Simple c) Passive Past Simple d) Active Past Simple 2) My homework is done every day. a) Active Past Simple b) Passive Past Simple c) Active Present Simple d) Passive Present Simple 3) We were at home yesterday.

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Download this explanation in PDF here.
See my explanation about the causative verbs 'let' and 'make' here.

We use a causative verb when we want to talk about something that someone else did for us or for another person. It means that the subject caused the action to happen, but didn't do it themselves. Maybe they paid, or asked, or persuaded the other person to do it. For example, we can say:

I cleaned my house. (This means I cleaned it myself).

If I paid someone to clean it, of course I can say:

A cleaner cleaned my house.

But, another way is to use a causative construction. So I can also say:

I had my house cleaned.

In a sense, using a causative verb is similar to using a passive. The important thing is that the house is now clean. We don't focus on who did the cleaning.

Have + object + past participle (have something done)

We usually use 'have something done' when we are talking about paying someone to do something for us. It's often used for services. The form is 'subject + have + object + past participle'.

I had my car washed.

John will have his house painted.

Get + object + past participle (get something done)

We can also use 'subject + get + object + past participle'. This has the same meaning as 'have', but is less formal.

The students get their essays checked.

I'll get my hair cut next week.

He got his washing machine fixed.

Try an exercise about 'have something done' and 'get something done' here.

Have someone do something (have + person + infinitive)

We can also use the construction 'subject + have + person + infinitive'. This has a very similar meaning to 'have something done', which we've already talked about, but this time we say who did the thing - we talk about the person who we asked to do the thing for us.

I had the electrician look at my broken light.

The doctor will have the nurse call the patients.

The teacher had the students write the answers on the whiteboard.

Get someone to do something (get + person + to + infinitive)

Finally, we can also use the construction 'get + someone + to + infinitive'. Again, this means that you cause the other person to do the action, maybe by paying them to do it, or by asking them to do it, or by persuading them to do it.

She gets her son to do his homework by promising him ice cream when he's finished.

I got the cleaner to clean under the cupboards.

Sometimes, this construction has the feeling that we needed to convince someone to do something, while the other constructions on this page are neutral.

Try an exercise about 'have someone do something' and 'get someone to do something' here.

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Learn about the causative verbs 'have' and 'get' here.

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An exercise about causatives: have someone do something and get someone to do something.

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Wordwall - Crea mejores lecciones de forma más rápida

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ANN USUALLY CUTS MY NAILS. - I HAVE MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), YESTERDAY ANN CUT MY NAILS - I HAD MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), TOMORROW ANN WILL CUT MY NAILS - I WILL HAVE MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), NOW ANN IS CUTTING MY NAILS - I AM HAVING MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), YESTERDAY AT 10 AM ANN WAS CUTTING MY NAILS - I WAS HAVING MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), NOBODY HAS EVER CUT MY NAILS - I HAVE NEVER HAD MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), TOMORROW AT 10 AM ANN WILL BE CUTTING MY NAILS - I WILL BE HAVING MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN),

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ANN USUALLY CUTS MY NAILS. - I HAVE MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN), YESTERDAY ANN CUT MY NAILS - I HAD MY NAILS CUT (BY ANN).

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The future perfect tense is only used in a few situations, but it's still good to know it. Here's how to make it.

Click here to download this explanation as a pdf.
Click here to learn about how to USE this tense.

The future perfect is made with the future simple of 'have' (will have) and the past participle. For regular past participles add 'ed' to the verb ('play' becomes 'played'). Click here to learn about irregular past participles.

Here's the positive:

By six pm tonight:

For the short form, we change will to 'll. But, when we are speaking, we also make 'have' shorter, so it sounds like I'll've finished (don't write this!). Here are some examples for you to listen to:

Click here for an exercise about the positive future perfect.

Here's the negative:

By next week,

Here's the short form. Listen to how I shorten 'have' when I'm speaking:
Here's an exercise about negative
To make the question, just put 'will' before the subject:

'Yes / no' questions:

By next year,

'Wh' questions:

Here's an exercise about the question form.
Here's an exercise about the positive, negative and question forms.

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How to make the future perfect tense in English - easy explanations and lots of exercises

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Also called the future progressive tense

The future continuous tense isn't taught very much in English classes but, in fact, English speakers use it a lot. You will sound much more natural if you master this tense.

report this ad Click here to download this explanation as a pdf.
Click here to learn about how to USE this tense.

Here's how to make it:

The positive (will + be + verb-ing):

At 10 am tomorrow,

In the same way as with the future simple, usually we use the short form ('ll be verb-ing) when we are speaking.

Sometimes students don't use the short form, because they are not sure how to pronounce it. Here are some examples to help.

Here's an exercise about making the future continuous positive.

Here's the negative:

When John gets home,

As with the positive, we usually use the short form (won't + be + verb-ing) when speaking.

Here's an exercise to practise the negative.

Next, the question.

'Yes / no' questions:

When she arrives at the party,

'Wh' questions:

Next weekend,

Here's an exercise about 'yes / no' and 'wh' questions.

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The future continuous (or future progressive) tense - clear explanations and lots of exercises

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Future perfect and continuous_Activity 3

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Future perfect and continuous_Activity 3

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Future continuous vs. future perfect - exercise 1

Choose the correct tense - future continuous or future perfect?

In twenty years' time most people ___ the Internet.
(will be using, will have been using)

By this time next year we ___ into our new house.
(will be moving, will have moved)
Related pages:
Online exercises, PDF worksheets and grammar rules.
Future perfect vs. future continuous Future perfect simple Future continuous Future perfect simple vs. future perfect continuous
Future continuous and future perfect

The future continuous and future perfect are used to talk about future actions.
Future continuous
The future continuous is used to refer to activities that will be in progress at a point of time.

At 8 o'clock I will be travelling to Dorset.
I'll be sleeping when you come back.
Josh won't be working this time tomorrow.
Will you be using the computer tonight?
Future perfect
The future perfect describes activities that will be completed before or at a certain time in the future.

I will have sent the project by Friday.
On 11 August this year we will have been married for five years.
Marion won't have made the meal by noon.
Will you have finished your work when we return?

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Future continuous and future perfect exercises

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Exercise 1: Future perfect or future continuous? By 2050 tourists ___ to the Moon. (will have been travelling - will be travelling)...

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Future perfect and continuous_Activity 4

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Future perfect and continuous_Activity 4

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Futuro perfecto vs continuo en inglés: uso, formación y ejercicios online. Ejemplos de conjugación de futuro continuo y futuro perfecto.

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Look at these examples to see how we can tell someone what another person said.

direct speech: 'I love the Toy Story films,' she said.
indirect speech: She said she loved the Toy Story films.

direct speech:'I worked as a waiter before becoming a chef,' he said.
indirect speech: He said he'd worked as a waiter before becoming a chef.

direct speech:'I'll phone you tomorrow,' he said.
indirect speech: He said he'd phone me the next day.

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

Reported speech is when we tell someone what another person said. To do this, we can use direct speech or indirect speech.

direct speech: 'I work in a bank,' said Daniel.
indirect speech:Daniel said that he worked in a bank.

In indirect speech, we often use a tense which is 'further back' in the past (e.g. worked) than the tense originally used (e.g. work). This is called 'backshift'. We also may need to change other words that were used, for example pronouns.

Present simple, present continuous and present perfect

When we backshift, present simple changes to past simple, present continuous changes to past continuous and present perfect changes to past perfect.

'I travel a lot in my job.'
Jamila said that she travelled a lot in her job.
'The baby's sleeping!'
He told me the baby was sleeping.
'I've hurt my leg.'
She said she'd hurt her leg.

Past simple and past continuous

When we backshift, past simple usually changes to past perfect simple, and past continuous usually changes to past perfect continuous.

'We lived in China for five years.'
She told me they'd lived in China for five years.
'It was raining all day.'
He told me it had been raining all day.

Past perfect

The past perfect doesn't change.

'I'd tried everything without success, but this new medicine is great.'
He said he'd tried everything without success, but the new medicine was great.

No backshift

If what the speaker has said is still true or relevant, it's not always necessary to change the tense. This might happen when the speaker has used a present tense.

'I go to the gym next to your house.'
Jenny told me that she goes to the gym next to my house. I'm thinking about going with her.
'I'm working in Italy for the next six months.'
He told me he's working in Italy for the next six months. Maybe I should visit him!
'I've broken my arm!'
She said she's broken her arm, so she won't be at work this week.

Pronouns, demonstratives and adverbs of time and place

Pronouns also usually change in indirect speech.

'I enjoy working in my garden,' said Bob.
Bob said that he enjoyed working in his garden.
'We played tennis for our school,' said Alina.
Alina told me they'd played tennis for their school.

However, if you are the person or one of the people who spoke, then the pronouns don't change.

'I'm working on my thesis,' I said.
I told her that I was working on my thesis.
'We want our jobs back!' we said.
We said that we wanted our jobs back.

We also change demonstratives and adverbs of time and place if they are no longer accurate.

'This is my house.'

He said this was his house. [You are currently in front of the house.]

He said that was his house. [You are not currently in front of the house.]

'We like it here.'

She told me they like it here. [You are currently in the place they like.]

She told me they like it there. [You are not in the place they like.]

'I'm planning to do it today.'

She told me she's planning to do it today. [It is currently still the same day.]

She told me she was planning to do it that day. [It is not the same day any more.]

In the same way, these changes to those, now changes to then, yesterday changes to the day before, tomorrow changes to the next/following day and ago changes to before.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Language level

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Do you know how to report what somebody else said? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

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English grammar exercise about reported speech

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What is indirect speech or reported speech?

When we tell people what another person said or thought, we often use reported speech or indirect speech. To do that, we need to change verb tenses (present, past, etc.) and pronouns ( I, you, my, your, etc.) if the time and speaker are different. For example, present tenses become past, I becomes he or she, and my becomes his or her, etc.

Omission of that

We often leave out that after reporting verbs like say, think, etc.

The most common verbs we use in reported speech are say and tell. We must pay attention here. We say tell somebody something, and say something (to somebody).

Tense changes in indirect speech

When a person said something in the past and now we tell somebody what that person said, the time is different, and for this reason, the verb tenses change. Look at a summary of these changes.

Changes in expressions

There are adverbs or expressions of time and place that change when we report what someone said. Here you have a list.

Questions in indirect speech

We use the normal order of words in reported questions, i.e. the subject comes before the verb, and it is not necessary to use do or did.

Imperatives in indirect speech

When we report an order or instruction, we use the form ask or tell someone to do something.

Pronoun changes in indirect speech

In reported or indirect speech we must also pay attention to the use of pronouns. When a person tells us something, he or she uses the first person ( I, me, my, we, us, our) to talk about himself or herself and the second person ( you, your) to talk about us, the person listening. But when we tell someone else what that person said, we are going to use the third person ( he, she, his, her, etc.) to talk about the speaker and the first person ( I, me, my) to talk about ourselves, the listener.

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Indirect speech - reported speech - Test-English

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Reported speech - indirect speech. Reporting statements, questions and commands. Reporting verbs. English intermediate grammar exercises.

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Reported Speech - Online Exercises - English Grammar

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Reported Speech - English Grammar Exercises

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What is a relative clause?

Click here to download this explanation as a pdf.

See a list of all the exercises about relative clauses here.

We can use relative clauses to join two English sentences, or to give more information about something.

I bought a new car. It is very fast.
→ I bought a new car that is very fast.

She lives in New York. She likes living in New York.
→ She lives in New York, which she likes.

Defining and Non-defining

A defining relative clause tells which noun we are talking about:

I like the woman who lives next door.
(If I don't say 'who lives next door', then we don't know which woman I mean).

A non-defining relative clause gives us extra information about something. We don't need this information to understand the sentence.

I live in London, which has some fantastic parks.
(Everybody knows where London is, so 'which has some fantastic parks' is extra information).

Defining relative clauses:

1: The relative pronoun is the subject:

First, let's consider when the relative pronoun is the subject of a defining relative clause.

We can use 'who', 'which' or 'that'. We use 'who' for people and 'which' for things. We can use 'that' for people or things.

The relative clause can come after the subject or the object of the sentence. We can't drop the relative pronoun.

For example (clause after the object of the sentence):

More examples (clause after the subject of the sentence):
Try an exercise where the relative pronoun is the subject here.
2: The relative pronoun is the object:

Next, let's talk about when the relative pronoun is the object of the clause. In this case we can drop the relative pronoun if we want to. Again, the clause can come after the subject or the object of the sentence. Here are some examples:
(Clause after the object) (Clause after the subject)
Non-defining relative clauses:

We don't use 'that' in non-defining relative clauses, so we need to use 'which' if the pronoun refers to a thing, and 'who' if it refers to a person. We can't drop the relative pronoun in this kind of clause, even if the relative pronoun is the object of the clause.

(Clause comes after the subject)

(Clause comes after the object)

Prepositions and relative clauses

If the verb in the relative clause needs a preposition, we put it at the end of the clause:

For example:

The music is good. Julie listens to the music.
→ The music (which / that) Julie listens to is good.

My brother met a woman. I used to work with the woman.
→ My brother met a woman (who / that) I used to work with.

The country is very hot. He went to the country.
→ The country (which / that) he went to is very hot.

I visited the city. John comes from the city.
→ I visited the city (that / which) John comes from.

The job is well paid. She applied for the job.
→ The job (which / that) she applied for is well paid.

Whose

'Whose' is always the subject of the relative clause and can't be left out. It replaces a possessive. It can be used for people and things.

The dog is over there. The dog's / its owner lives next door.
→ The dog whose owner lives next door is over there.

The little girl is sad. The little girl's / her doll was lost.
→ The little girl whose doll was lost is sad.

The woman is coming tonight. Her car is a BMW.
→ The woman whose car is a BMW is coming tonight.

The house belongs to me. Its roof is very old.
→ The house whose roof is old belongs to me.

Where / when / why

We can sometimes use these question words instead of relative pronouns and prepositions.

I live in a city. I study in the city.

→ I live in the city where I study.
→ I live in the city that / which I study in.
→ I live in the city in which I study.

The bar in Barcelona is still there. I met my wife in that bar.

→ The bar in Barcelona where I met my wife is still there.
→ The bar in Barcelona that / which I met my wife in is still there.
→ The bar in Barcelona in which I met my wife is still there.

The summer was long and hot. I graduated from university in the summer.

→ The summer when I graduated from university was long and hot.
→ The summer that / which I graduated from university in was long and hot.
→ The summer in which I graduated was long and hot.
(See a list of all the exercises about relative clauses here.)

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Clear explanations of English relative clauses, with lots of examples and exercises.

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Relative clause exercises about defining and non-defining relative clauses.

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We use relative clauses to describe or give extra information about something we have already mentioned. We often use relative pronouns (e.g. who, where, that, which, whose) to introduce relative clauses.
What are relative clauses and why do we use them?

A clause is a group of words containing a verb. Relative clauses are a way of giving more information about a person, thing, place, event, etc. We often use them to avoid repeating information.
The Uros people make fires. Their fires are used for cooking. = The Uros people make fires, which they use for cooking.
OK, so there the relative pronoun is 'which' and it refers back to 'the fires' and 'which they use for cooking' is the relative clause.

That's right, which is used for things (never for people). There are a lot of other relative pronouns: who (for people), that (for a thing or a person), where (for a place), whose (for possession) and when (for a time).

What are defining relative clauses?

They are clauses that you need in the sentence for it to make sense.
The people who live here have had the same kind of lifestyle for hundreds of years.
If I said 'The people have had the same kind of lifestyle for hundreds of years', you wouldn't know which people I was talking about.

There are no commas before and after the clause.

No, not with defining relative clauses.
The islanders pick the tall reeds that grow at the sides of the lake and use them to make the islands.
OK, so what about non-defining relative clauses?

We use those to give extra information, which isn't absolutely necessary. We use commas to separate them from the rest of the sentence, unless they come at the end of the sentence, when we use a comma and a full stop.
That grey thing, which you can see on the roof there, isn't very traditional.
The video's from yesterday,when she was on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca.
This is Sophie,whose blog you've been reading.
OK, got it, I think. Is there anything else that I need to know?

Ah, you just used a relative clause with that. We can use that instead of who or which in defining clauses, not non-defining clauses.

So this grammar snack, which has been very interesting, has taught me everything that I need to know about relative clauses.

OK, it's taught you nearly everything you need to know.

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Sophie decides to post videos on her world-famous travel blog.

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Exercises Explanation Downloads

Defining relative clauses - who, which, that, where

Exercise 1

Choose the correct relative pronouns to complete the following defining relative clauses.

Defining relative clauses

We use defining relative clauses to specify which person, thing or place we are talking about.

Who, which, where

We use who for people.

He met the police officer who saved his life.

We use which for things and animals.

He put on the suit which he wore for special occasions.

We use where for places.

This is the hotel where we spent our honeymoon.

That

We can use that instead of who or which. But we often use who for people and which/ that for things.

He's the neighbour who /that helped us to move out.

Change the cable which /that connects the computer to the printer.

Be careful with these common mistakes!

We cannot use * what or an expression like * that he/she etc. in this type of relative clauses.

That's the student that /who I told you about. (NOT the student what I told you about)

That's the man that /who tried to steal my wallet. (NOT the man that he tried to steal my wallet.)

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Defining relative clauses – who, which, that, where - Test-English

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Defining relative clauses. Use of the relative pronouns who, which, where, that. English grammar and exercises. Gap-filling and multiple choice exercises.

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Definite, Indefinite and Zero Articles worksheet

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Liveworksheets transforms your traditional printable worksheets into self-correcting interactive exercises that the students can do online and send to the teacher.

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Definite and Indefinite Article - Online Exercises - English Grammar

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Definite and Indefinite Article - English Grammar Exercises